Rep. Takano Statement on the Passing of Senator Dianne Feinstein
Washington, D.C. – Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA) released the following statement on the passing of Senator Dianne Feinstein.
“I am deeply saddened by the passing of California’s senior Senator, the indomitable Dianne Feinstein.
“Long famed for her bipartisan relationships in the Senate, I know Senator Feinstein for her intentional work building bipartisan relationships at the local level, particularly throughout the Inland Empire. Her work protecting our water resources and the California desert has been critical to the health of our state and its residents.
“As the first openly gay person from California to serve in Congress, and as someone who was publicly outed in 1994, her leadership was personal to me. Senator Feinstein was one of only fourteen Senators who voted against the Defense of Marriage Act, legislation that denied my community the right to marry. She spent her 30 years in the halls of Congress and decades in the streets of San Francisco taking on bigoted polices and moving the needle on LGBTQI+ equality.
"It is important that we have voices of conscience in our government, leaders that do not shy away from providing accountability to power. As someone who’s family suffered in a time where our nation disregarded its values, I was always gratified by Senator Feinstein’s work to shine a light on extrajudicial, unethical actions taken during the War on Terror.
“While Acting Ranking Member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, I worked with Senator Feinstein to pass the Veterans Care Agreement and West Los Angeles Leasing Act. We also worked together to successfully block the Trump Administration’s attempts to remove Defense Media Activity from my district, stripping jobs from our state.
“The issues Congress is grappling with now – the realities of drastic climate change, putting an end to the gun violence epidemic, calling out government mismanagement, defending the rights of women – are ones Senator Feinstein spent decades working to solve. I send my deepest sympathies to Senator Feinstein's family, friends, and staff."
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