WASHINGTON – Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., criticized California Gov. Gavin Newsom in a statement after he said he would appoint an interim replacement if necessary for 90-year-old Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., who has faced health problems during the past year.
In 2021, Newsom pledged to appoint a Black woman to the Senate if Feinstein were to resign. When asked on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday whether Newsom would abide by his pledge if that time comes, he reiterated that he would.
“But you’re gonna abide by — it would be essentially a caretaker, an African-American woman?” NBC’s Chuck Todd asked to which Newsom replied “Uh We hope we never have to make this decision, but I abide by what I’ve said very publicly and on a consistent basis, yes.”
Newsom also made clear he wouldn’t appoint anyone who was running for Feinstein’s seat.
“It would be completely unfair to the Democrats that have worked their tail off,” Newsom said. “That primary is just a matter of months away. I don’t want to tip the balance of that.”
That would also rule out Lee, who is running for Feinstein’s spot in the 2024 election. She said in a statement on X that she was “troubled” by Newsom’s remarks.
“The idea that a Black woman should be appointed only as a caretaker to simply check a box is insulting to countless Black women across this country who have carried the Democratic Party to victory election after election,” Lee said.
“The perspective of Black women in the U.S. Senate is sorely needed — and needed for more than a few months. Governor Newsom knows this, which is why he made the pledge in the first place,” Lee added. “If the Governor intends to keep his promise and appoint a Black woman to the Senate, the people of California deserve the best possible person for that job. Not a token appointment.”
Questions about a potential Feinstein replacement intensified after the senator was briefly hospitalized last month from a fall. She also spent nearly three months away from Congress after being hospitalized with shingles in March.
