Feinstein will be just fine. Her sunset days are coming anyway. We all know what a good job she’s done. If she passes the baton this next election, that will also be ok.

I still disagree with the non endorsement.

Dems don’t need to be the party that backs the incumbent no matter what. New ideas are good, and the country changes over time. If those changes are important enough to enough voters, getting a new person to represent them can be the right thing.

DiFi is amazing and will still probably win. But could there be a better person out there somewhere? Sure. Let’s see.

And that reasoning is one of the ways the GOP kicks are butt.

Democratic party leader like herself, a bit farther left, definitely younger (51). Both would be normal outcomes in a healthy, cohesive party.

Kevin de Leon's party creds are good and he's somewhat left of Sen. Feinstein, but he's NOT exactly one of the rule-or-ruin types hostile to the Democratic Party's dominant coalition of mainstream blocs. Far from it. He works to promote his positions from within and is one of our party leaders, merely seeking to move up from within, not claiming it has to be dismantled and rebuilt.

From the Sacramento Bee:

Speaking of, note that the cap-P Progressives in the party have been trying and failing to field a viable candidate of their own. Backlash from 2016 perhaps?

That last's a good thing, of course, because the Democratic coalition of factions that currently controls California state politics is hugely dependent especially on the continued support of Hispanics. Many are naturally liberals and will be with us, but probably more than half are conservatives. That goes for many others. Our coalition is as large, diverse and united as it is because of external pressures from the GOP.

HOWEVER, if California Democrats were to move too far to the left, that could weaken this coalition. And then we'd see some real infighting that's wasn't just media hyperbole.

I think De Leon is well within the mainstream of the California Democratic Party.

He is somewhat more left than her, something hopefully some can be pleased about, even if he does work effectively within the party structure instead of trying to kick it apart.

It is a little litmus for both populist and rule-or-ruin leftist passions, though, both of which require hostility toward an "establishment" regardless of its positions on issues. Look at the destructive antagonism toward the ACA -- most of that was because that progressive advance was achieved by the party mainstream, thus had to be denied.

YOU GO GIRL!!!

We need vigorous representation.

We have a population of 39 million plus and only 2 senators. Our senators have to be really strong, physically as well as mentally. Dianne Feinstein has served admirably but is too old.

I would have liked to see Xavier Becerra run for senator.

I'd like to know if those objecting to de Leon's candidacy are from California.

In fact, I'd like to know what state they are from.

California is a true blue state. We run liberal candidates, and they win.

All these conservatives from conservative states telling liberal Californians who voted overwhelmingly for Democrats including Hillary how to run the Democratic Party in our state.

Make your states as liberal and Democratic as California and then you can have a say in our internal politics.

Born in Pasadena (Huntington Hospital), but also raised in London (Belsize Park if you know the area) and NYC (Manhattan was much less in duration, only 2 years). My parents had a nasty divorce when I was 3, which lead to me being treated like luggage at times.
.
I am registered at my fathers residence in Marina del Rey whilst I am away in the EU working on my PhD in Economic History/International Relations.

I do admit I do not know the entire state that well, having never really travelled all over it, but I loooove SoCal and will probably someday move back after I finished with my studies.

My main concern (and it is probably unfounded, but after Trump, who knows) is that we have a brutal primary, and somehow a Republican slips in via the jungle primary and unforeseen shit tips the seat (as unlikely as it sounds) to the Rethug.

the rise of a viable contender before the primary sorta precludes an endorsement unless you really wanna piss of the contenders supporters...which is never a good idea.

lose lose for the state party....

.. I am embarrassed. Diane does a hell of a job, and is a powerful voice in Congress.

I will vote for her wherever needed

I'm no longer a California, but I spent most of my life there, and I feel exactly the same.

themselves on this one.

As Republicans continue to be a non-entity in California, you’ll see more strategic endorsements and often times none prior to the general election based on more Dems going head to head in the general.

It makes California Democrats sound like a joke. It makes the people that did this sound like clueless clowns.

This is the most ridiculous news I have heard out of the California Democratic Party.....

We are literally at War and she is a great and battle hardened soldier and General in this fight and they don't want to back her?

WTF?

I'm 74. I am not prejudiced against the old in general, but Feinstein is too old. She should withdraw her candidacy.

Riven by conflict between progressive and more moderate forces at the state party’s annual convention here, delegates favored Feinstein’s progressive rival, state Senate leader Kevin de León, over Feinstein by a 54 percent to 37 percent margin, according to results announced Sunday.

Neither candidate reached the 60 percent threshold required to receive the party endorsement for 2018. But the snubbing of Feinstein led de León to claim a victory for his struggling campaign.

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/25/california-democrats-feinstein-leon-423452

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_de_Le%C3%B3n

de Leon represents East LA and is Speaker pro tempore of the CA Senate.

When you poll Californians at large she has 46% and he has 17%. And that is the vote you absolutely must win. In addition, many are disturbed by how much money he takes from corporations.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/02/20/alison-hartson-kevin-de-leon-dianne-feinstein-california-senate/

See table “Please say if you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of these candidates for US senator. If you’ve never heard of the person please tell me. How about…” on page 9 of http://www.ppic.org/wp-content/uploads/s-118mbs.pdf

45% responded "never heard of" de Leon, while only 7% respond that way for Feinstein.

or it could be that aside from activists he's just not that popular

Competition in primaries is good. As long as we follow the old actor’s rule: never speak ill of a Democrat. Compete on ideas; if you lose, endorse the winner.

The most likely outcome of the primary will be de Leon versus Feinstein in the fall general election.

It's unlikely that either completely will avoid pointing out the faults and weaknesses of the other in a general election campaign. And their surrogates and supporters will be less restrained.

Compete on ideas.

All of us should strongly oppose Dems that go low against other Dems. As the old actor said, nothing is worse for our movement. We must stay positive and only critize those who wish to destroy our democracy - the GOP.

We have lots of issues that are peculiar to our area -- like water, like immigration, so many, many issues.

And with Feinstein and Harris, even if they do a top-notch job, we in Southern California have no voice from our area in the Senate.

The population of California is 39 million plus, and we have only 2 senators, both from Northern California -- where it actually rains.

We have unique problems in Southern California and no voice in the Senate. It's about time Feinstein left, and we elected a senator from Southern California.

Imagine an are with a population as great as or many times that of some other states with utterly no senator. That's Southern California no matter how hard Feinstein and Harris try to represent our area.

Yes you’re right

It has to start somewhere.

But she should have left at least 2 decades ago. She’s Republican light who makes a big liberal splash every few years to fool Democrats.

As someone who grew up in the bay she has horrified me on many occasions. She is a democrat but a very conservative one from a very progressive state.


Long past time to oust her.

In addition, both Kamala Harris and Feinstein are from Northern California.

Southern California has next to no representation in the Senate.

Barbara Boxer was sort of a compromise.

De Leon is from Southern California.

Aspects to this controversy that people from New York, Michigan or Alabama could never understand.

Southern California is not represented in the Senate.

DeLeon was in charge in our California Senate. He knows Southern California. His campaign is just starting. I did not know he was running. I will be very interested in hearing what he has to say.

Simplistic posts on this website.

People should learn facts before they post here.

I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a lot of arm twisting to get Feinstein up to 37% support at the convention. She simply is out of the mainstream of today’s California Democrats.

No Republicans in an election....only Democrats. If only the rest of our democracy were as healthy as California.