Feinstein faces growing storm on the left
The California senator appears likely to face a serious primary challenge.
By CARLA MARINUCCI 09/07/2017 05:04 AM EDT
SAN FRANCISCO — Sen. Dianne Feinstein has dominated California politics for more than a quarter of a century. But facing blistering criticism that she’s out of touch with the progressive left following her recent comments about President Donald Trump and DACA, it’s increasingly looking like the Democratic lawmaker will face a major primary challenge if she runs for a fifth full term.
Feinstein, the oldest member of the Senate, has been the target of sustained liberal criticism since January. Her centrist brand of politics, skeptical view of single-payer health care and support for some of the president’s earliest nominees have drawn the ire of progressives who have little tolerance for Feinstein’s pragmatic approach in the Trump era.
At times, the senator has been highly critical of Trump. But her recent suggestion that, given time, Trump “can be a good president” — and her concession Tuesday that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program might be on shaky legal ground — have emboldened her critics and turned a spotlight on her reelection plans.
Buzz in state political circles increasingly centers on one prospective Democratic challenger, Kevin de León of Los Angeles, the first Latino to hold the powerful position of state Senate president pro tempore in more than 120 years.
De León, the son of immigrants — his father was Chinese and Guatemalan, his mother Guatemalan — has joined forces with billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer to become a leading advocate on the issue of climate change. And, with his introduction of the California Values Act, also dubbed the Sanctuary State bill, he has assumed a leading role in the branding of California as the “state of resistance” against Trump.
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http://www.politico.com/story/2017/09/07/dianne-feinstein-california-primary-2018-242409
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