Lori Falce: Feinstein and Santos need to choose a new adventure

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and U.S. Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., don’t have a whole lot in common.

Feinstein will turn 90 next month, three months before the next-oldest member of Congress, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa. She is the senior senator from California, holding her seat since 1992. Only Grassley and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have been there longer.

She is respected by many colleagues on both sides of the aisle for longstanding service and her position as a more middle-minded broker who has advocated for bills outside the lockstep of party.

Then there is Santos.

While Feinstein’s record in the public eye is an open book since her election to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1969, Santos is more of a choose-your-own-adventure story.

Remember those books that made you flip back and forth to get to the end of a narrative you picked based on whether you turn left or right, open this door or take this path? Following the bio and public statements of Santos feels like that.

Is he Jewish? Was his mom in the Twin Towers on Sept. 11? Was he a volleyball standout? Did he produce “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” on Broadway? Work on Wall Street? Attend NYU? The dizzying array of options makes his resume feel as fantastically diverse as a Barbie doll’s.

What is undeniable is that he is among the lowest-ranking members of the House of Representatives, taking office Jan. 3. Because of the deluge of inconsistencies and questions about his life, campaign and finances, his presence on Capitol Hill is almost negligible. He sat alone in the chamber waiting for the speaker elections to conclude over two days in January. He was given seats on two relatively low-profile committees but declined both amid controversy.

Now let’s talk what Feinstein and Santos have in common: They should both step down.

Feinstein returned to Washington this week after a protracted absence because of shingles. Sickness happens and should be accommodated, as it was with Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., and his hospitalization for depression following a stroke.

But Feinstein has had a deteriorating roll in her office for years. Her memory is faltering and leading to embarrassing episodes like the 2020 hearing in which she repeated a question to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey twice without seeming to realize she was on a loop. She herself asked to be replaced on the powerful Judiciary Committee, but that was blocked by GOP objections.

She is not running for reelection and is likely to be replaced by Rep. Katie Porter or Rep. Adam Schiff. Why not gracefully step aside now?

For Santos, the reason is far different. It isn’t about damaging a political career that has stretched over half a century. It’s because his background questions have led to a 13-count federal indictment, including seven counts of wire fraud, three of money laundering, two of false statements to the House of Representatives and one of theft of public funds.

Santos pleaded not guilty Wednesday. The case will take months to play out, at best. He has already announced a reelection bid.

Feinstein and Santos have the opportunity to do the right thing for their constituents and allow them to be zealously represented without distraction. In Feinstein’s case, it would be a dignified way to exit. For Santos, it would be the only way to give Democrats and Republicans in his district what they have demanded for months.