Dianne Feinstein, California senator who broke glass ceilings, dies at 90 BY KATHRYN WATSON
UPDATED ON: SEPTEMBER 29, 2023 / 8:15 PM / CBS NEWS
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who shattered glass ceilings during her more than three decades in the U.S. Senate, has died at the age of 90.
Feinstein cast her last vote in the Senate late Thursday morning, according to Senate records. According to a statement by her chief of staff, James Sauls, she died at her Washington, D.C., home Thursday night.
"Senator Feinstein never backed away from a fight for what was just and right," Sauls said. "At the same time, she was always willing to work with anyone, even those she disagreed with, if it meant bettering the lives of Californians or the betterment of our nation."
She was the longest-serving woman in the Senate, as well as the longest- serving senator from California. But in recent months and years, questions about her health have clouded her governing profile.
Feinstein's legacy
Feinstein was the first woman to chair the Senate Rules and Administration Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, the latter of which she ran for six years. Feinstein served as the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, and was also the first woman to serve in that role, from 2017 to 2021.
In the Senate since 1992, Feinstein fought for what she called "sensible gun laws," worked to preserve the environment and improve her state's water infrastructure, and she championed LGBTQ+ rights and the legalization of same-sex marriage.
Feinstein authored and helped pass the federal assault weapons ban in 1994. The law expired in 2004, and along with other Democrats, including President Joe Biden, Feinstein advocated to reinstate it.
The California senator also helped establish the nationwide Amber Alert network to alert the public to missing children.
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