The Dianne Feinstein Scandal

Dianne Feinstein's Senate colleagues certainly don't seem to be in any hurry to clean up the ethical scandal in their midst, wherein Senator Feinstein directed more than a billion dollars' worth of contracts to her husband's company through her role as Chairman of the Senate Military Construction Committee.

From David Keene in Monday's edition of The Hill: "...she almost got away without anyone even knowing what she was up to. Her colleagues on the subcommittee, for example, had no reason even to suspect that she knew what companies might benefit from her decisions because that information is routinely withheld to avoid favoritism. What they didn’t know was that her chief legal adviser, who also happened to be a business partner of her husband’s and the vice chairman of one of the companies involved, was secretly forwarding her lists of projects and appropriation requests that were coming before the committee and in which she and her husband had an interest — information that has only come to light recently as a result of the efforts of several California investigative reporters.

"This adviser insists — apparently with a straight face — that he provided the information to Feinstein’s chief of staff so that she could recuse herself in cases where there might be a conflict. He says that he assumes she did so. The public record, however, indicates that she went right ahead and fought for these same projects."

As a Californian, Feinstein is an embarrassment. Not only has she, by all appearances, stolen taxpayer dollars, but she has compromised her ability to work effectively for her California constituents. Her every move is now suspect.

Unless the Senator can step forward and offer a detailed, rational defense and rebuttal regarding the contracts, she should resign for the good of our state.

Meanwhile, shame on her colleagues for turning a blind eye to her behavior.