Senator Diane Feinstein’s Constituent Breakfast

Submitted by Kelsey Chase

July 12, 2009

As a summer intern in a city full of unique opportunities and rare experiences I have made every effort to make the best of my stay in Washington DC. You really never know who you might see or what you might stumble across. So far, a couple notable experiences I’ve had were attending a small presentation given by the former Presidential candidate John McCain and sitting in on a Congressional hearing that my boss testified at. This week I had a memorable experience meeting the Senator of California, Senator Diane Feinstein. Senator Feinstein has achieved the status of one of the most powerful women in the United States, as a result of her achievements in the United States Senate, and her accomplishments for the state of California. Senator Feinstein has served in a political leadership position for more than 30 years, and her resume is quite impressive. She began her career working in local government in San Francisco, and she eventually ran a victorious campaign for Mayor of San Francisco. After an unsuccessful attempt of running for the Governor of California, she won the vacant seat in United States Senate.

Senator Feinstein has a unique opportunity for California constituents visiting Washington DC. Every Wednesday the Senator provides a constituent breakfast in the Hart Senate Office building directly across the street from the Capitol building. The breakfast took place in an exquisite banquet room on the ninth floor of the building that is overlooking the city. Senator Feinstein’s opening remarks thanked her constituents and she reminded us that if it weren’t our support, she would not be where she is today. I found that Senator Feinstein’s constituent breakfast was a very friendly and accommodating environment. I got the feeling that Senator Feinstein truly cared for her constituents, and my feelings were confirmed later on in her presentation when I learned that she pays for this weekly event out of her own pocket. While working in Washington DC I have often felt that a big city filled with many working adults has little room for a college summer intern. As a young college undergraduate in a city full of prominent leaders and high profile individuals it is very easy to experience the overwhelming feeling of being lost among such important people. After meeting Senator Feinstein and listening to her speak directly to me, a constituent of California, she made this feeling of insignificance void. This was an odd feeling in the sense that in the one hour she had devoted for us, it was as if she was speaking to us not as a famous United States Senator, but a friend, and someone who was willing to listen to us.

California currently has 38 million residents and is the most populous state in the country. Many former leaders of California often say that it is a state that is ungovernable due to the mechanics of California government and the rich diversity of ideas. The pluralistic tendencies of California do in fact make political leadership in California a challenging task, but I consider those who are successful leaders for our state to be among the best in history. I am absolutely sure that Diane Feinstein is one of these historical figures. She has essentially paved the way for female leadership in our country; she is the chairwoman of some of the most important Senate Committees, such as the Judiciary Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Senator Feinstein has recently introduced legislation to establish federal oversight for markets that trade carbon allowances. Being a resident of California and a long time leader in environmental protection, Senator Feinstein has once again put California as the leader in environmental reform. She spoke about this new bill during the constituent breakfast, and she stressed that the approval of this legislation would be a landmark stride towards the issue of global warming. This new bill would authorize federal oversight for carbon emissions nationwide. The oversight authority would be allocated among two or three agencies, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. As an intern for a government regulatory entity, I fully understand and support the creation of an oversight movement for carbon emissions.

The best part of the breakfast was the Senator’s question and answer segment. While most of the questions were aimed at addressing the Senator’s efforts to combat the economic crisis on a national level, one question narrowed the conversation to the unfavorable state of California’s economy. With California facing a multibillion-dollar deficit, the state of California’s economy is on every Californians mind. Senator Feinstein did not attempt to answer the question with a typical politicized reply; rather, she answered the question with a raw and truthful response. She highlighted the fact that if something is not done in Sacramento to address the growing deficit, California will be in the worst economic shape in its history by the end of the year. Although making California government decisions is not specifically her responsibility as a United States Senator, she noted the importance of keeping businesses in California. A major issue that seems to be one of the underlying problems of California’s government is the 2/3-majority vote required to pass all budget related bills. The Senator substantiated this problem of California politics as a major blockade to achieving a balanced budget. The Senator also brought up another serious challenge facing California, the issue of California’s declining education. California is currently ranked 48th in the nation for educational performance, a position that is downright unacceptable.