Dianne Feinstein

 

Diane Feinstein, the longest serving Senator from California and the oldest member of the Senate, has died. She was 90. 

A centrist by her state's standards, in 1992 she became the first California woman to be elected to the Senate, after previously serving as Mayor of San Francisco. 

That centrist reputation served her well through the first three decades of her Senate career, but put her at odds with her constituents as California moved further Left in recent years. 

You might remember recent questions about her mental acuity - even from party members - as her age began to affect her work. Partly if not fully in response to that criticism, she had announced she would not seek re-election after her current term, which was to end next year. 

RIP