Schiff has drawn ridicule from Donald Trump for his fierce criticism of the former president in various positions: as the official responsible for impeachment of Trump in 2020, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and member of the select committee of the Chamber investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
In his campaign announcement, he recalled all of these roles.
“The fight for our democracy and our working families is part of the same fight,” Schiff said. “Because if our democracy doesn’t meet the needs of Americans, they will look for alternatives, like a dangerous demagogue who promises only he can fix it.”
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) recently barred Schiff from serving on the intelligence committee again, arguing that Schiff’s role in the first impeachment trial against Trump made him unfit to serve on the committee.
Schiff told reporters later that his “cardinal sin appears to be that I directed the removal of the master (of McCarthy) at Mar-a-Lago”.
“He will do the bidding for the former president. It’s entirely up to the former president, and that’s something the former president wants,” Schiff added.
Feinstein, 89, filed initial paperwork to run for re-election in 2024 last year, but did not explicitly say whether she would seek another term. California’s other senator, Democrat Alex Padilla, 49, won his first full term in November and won’t be re-elected until 2028.
Schiff will join Democratic Representatives Katie Porter, who announced her candidacy earlier this month, and Barbara Lee, who told her colleagues she intended to run for the Senate seat. California leans heavily Democratic and uses a multiparty primary system in which the top two candidates qualify for the general election, regardless of party affiliation.
Feinstein, the former mayor of San Francisco, was a trailblazer, elected to the Senate in 1992 amid women’s outrage over the Senate’s treatment of Anita Hill, who accused Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment while he was a candidate for the Supreme Court. judge. Thomas denied the charges.
As the oldest serving senator, Feinstein has for years brushed off questions about her age and ability to serve, but has also stepped down from a number of key roles in recent years. She resigned as the first Democrat from the Senate Judiciary Committee before the 117th Congress. Last year, Feinstein declined to be considered acting Senate president, a position that traditionally goes to the ruling party’s most senior senator and who is third in line after the presidency. The role instead went to Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.).
If Feinstein resigns before his term is up, California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) said he would appoint a black woman to fill the post.
“We have several names in mind, and the answer is yes,” he said when asked if he would do it on MSNBC’s “The ReidOut” in 2021.
There have been no black women in the Senate since Kamala D. Harris of California resigned her seat to become vice president. Newsom nominated Padilla to fill Harris’ seat, making him the first Latino senator to represent California.
Dylan Wells contributed to this report.
