What is Dianne Feinstein thinking?

The MoJo Daily newsletter, Monday through Friday. [View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter](     April 17, 2023 Pressure is once again mounting for Dianne Feinstein to step down—and once again, the 89-year-old California senator appears [hellbent on sticking around](. For countless Americans, Feinstein's recalcitrance is more than the sorry end to a storied political career. It's a deeply familiar, even painful, example of the private crises families face when loved ones suffering from cognitive decline are unwilling to let go of personal freedoms. Today, my colleague Stephanie Mencimer, who you may recall wrote an excellent piece on why [Ruth Bader Ginsburg should have resigned]( under President Obama, writes on Feinstein's saga and how the lack of cognitive care in the United States [forces families to flounder helplessly](. I found these lines particularly compelling: Feinstein’s public drama should be a catalyst for a more meaningful and coordinated response to the coming dementia disaster from aging baby boomers so that the burden of care and decision-making doesn’t fall solely on individual families. Instead, the Democrats will wring their hands at the awkwardness, while Republicans enjoy the Democrats’ problem (and ignore their own aging legislators). And millions of American families will continue to suffer in private. I don't have to take care of my parents, yet. But when I think about some of the potential burdens ahead, I'm instantly overwhelmed with piercing anxiety. Countless questions race through my mind. Do I have enough in my 401K to cover such and such disaster? Should I not have a second child? I don't have the answers. But I do know that it doesn't have to be this damn hard. As Stephanie writes, other countries actually have dementia care programs in place; social safety nets aren't political weapons—they're baked into a more moral society. Here's hoping that Feinstein's last days can teach us better. —Inae Oh Advertisement [Domini Impact Investments]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s Saga Is a Very Public Example of a National Crisis]( There are millions of baby boomers who are about to join the ranks of dementia patients. BY STEPHANIE MENCIMER MOJO MUST-READS BY DANIEL SCHULMAN   Sons of Wichita Like the Rockefellers and the Kennedys, the Kochs are one of the most influential dynasties of the modern age, but they have never been the subject of a major biography—until now. [Get]([Sons of Wichita]([here](. [Trending] [DeSantis has lots of plans to fight the left—and zero to preserve millions of Floridians’ health care]( BY PEMA LEVY   [Rutgers faculty unions suspend historic strike after securing major victories]( BY NOAH LANARD   [Another day, another revelation about Justice Thomas' financial disclosures]( BY JULIA LURIE   [Salvaging the sacred from climate disaster]( BY ROCHELLE BAKER Advertisement [Domini Impact Investments]( [Special Feature] [Special Feature]( ["You would only need a week": How the next Republican president could ban abortion nationwide]( The fight over the meaning of a Victorian-era law could mean everything for reproductive freedom. BY MADISON PAULY [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Donate Monthly]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755