It's not as bad as the headline makes it sound. You might imagine that Feinstein is so far gone she can't handle her own personal finances, but:
Feinstein handed over power of attorney to her daughter, 66-year-old Katherine Feinstein, in part to help handle legal battles over her late husband Richard Blum’s estate... In one dispute, Katherine, Feinstein’s only child, is at odds with Blum’s three daughters over the ownership of a luxury beach house owned by Feinstein....
She doesn't want to be distracted by intrafamily litigation that's really about Katherine's interests, not her own. But it's something to pounce on, if you're inclined. Yes, for other reasons, it's apparent that Feinstein doesn't belong in Congress, but this adds almost nothing.
Here's the NYT story that the NY Post relies on. Excerpt:
Willie Brown, a former mayor of San Francisco and a longtime friend of the Feinstein family, said that the feud over finances probably reflects longstanding animosity between Katherine Feinstein and Mr. Blum’s three daughters. “There would not have been any issue, frankly, if there was mutual love between all the people,” he said.
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54 comments:
You were veering close to losing your Madison privileges with all that talk of rule of law Trump and Joe Rogan somewhat correct amusement- way to pull it back with the Feinstein incompetent but not for this reason stuff…
At least she didn't give power of attorney to her Chinese spy driver. Whew! What a relief that she's got everything under control as the bestest, wisest, most influential nonagenarian Senator in all the land. We need a lot more politicians like DiFi! Respect!
Brain dead democrats are destroying the country, and nobody seems to care.
"You might imagine that Feinstein is so far gone she can't handle her own personal finances,"...
You got that right. Have you seen/heard her lately? Seriously. It is completely ridiculous that she is allowed to vote on matters or do anything other than live out her days in comfort in an assisted living facility.
Shame on her handlers. I don't know how these people can look at themselves in the mirror in the morning.
So, Feinstein has a beach house, Joe has a beach house, and even the people's favorite communist, Bernie, has 3 houses, one of which is a son-of-a-beach lake house. No wonder the geroncrats are fighting so dirty and so desperately to save our Democratcy.
"She doesn't want to be distracted by intrafamily litigation..."
In order for one to be distracted from a given subject one must first be able to focus on that subject. Where is the evidence she is able to focus on anything? She's utterly senile for Christ's sake!
i really Wish, that some NEWS person, would ask Sen Feinstein about her feelings on this..
Mostly because, i'm PRETTY SURE, that Dianne wouldn't know what they were talking about
That's not a big deal. When my Dad was 90, he didn't want to deal with things either.
Once again Althouse bends over backwards to give a Lefty the benefit of a doubt and the best possible interpretation of events.
Yet more "cruel neutrality".
That's not a big deal. When my Dad was 90, he didn't want to deal with things either.
Was your dad a U.S. Senator when he was 90?
Elderly couple go to lawyer's office, indicate they want a divorce.
Lawyer: How old are you?
Man: I'm 97, she's 95.
Lawyer: How long you been married?
Woman: 72 years.
Lawyer: You're nearing the end of life's journey, you've been together so long, so I have to ask: Why now?
Woman: We were waiting for the kids to die.
Die in office. So dignified.
It's what our founders wanted. ///////////
I don't think you cede power of attorney so much as grant it to another to act on your behalf. Also I thought that if someone was mentally incompetent that operated to legally prevent them from granting power of attorney to anyone. That being said, the trio of Biden, Feinstein, and McConnel do not fill me with confidence in Washington.
Oh I should have included Fetterman as well with the trio. Though he is less unnerving because even if he didn't have a stroke he would have been taking orders from someone else anyway.
Fair enough. She's handing over the important things, like her own dynastic finances and just keeping control over the more minor points like whether we end up in a war with Russia or China.
What’s the problem? The inability to perceive or process reality defines a Democrat.
They are obviously mentally ill.
People often find rational to explain away the senility of their loved ones. It's usually pretty easily seen as rationale.
Dan from Madison wrote: "It is completely ridiculous that she is allowed to vote"
That's not her voting. They showed her in Congress the other day on video and Patty Murray told her how to vote. "Just say aye," Murray said repeatedly as Feinstein tried to talk. They wouldn't even let her speak. And so Feinstein said "Aye."
It's Patty Murray voting for her.
Feinstein isn't mentally competent to understand what she's voting on or to speak for herself.
Edit: Here's the video
https://youtu.be/dtMWXxPHYfE
There's plenty more to be concerned about. Did we elect her aides?
They wheel her carcass around and it votes. What a system!
The beach house is owned by Feinstein but there is litigation over it between Feinstein’s daughter and the Blum daughters? There’s something missing from this story.
Yet another “public servant” with a “luxurious beach house,” yet not enough sense to say “Aye” without multiple prompts. What a country!
MadisonMan said...
That's not a big deal. When my Dad was 90, he didn't want to deal with things either.
MM? when your Dad was 90.. was he one of the 100 top lawmakers in the country?
Just asking
You'd really need to see the scope of the POA to be able to comment on whether it adds anything to the question of fitness. You can draft a limited POA that restricts the power to a certain issue or even sub-issue (LPOA could be limited to litigation over the beach house, for example, if she did not want to give up power to decide other legal matters). So if it is a general POA, yet her spinners say it is only for the squabbling amongst the greedy leftist child brats over who gets more, then it is relevant to the fitness question and we know that's just a line.
it's on the ocean at Pajaro Dunes, o the North end of Monterrey Bay
Everybody is conservative about their own affairs.
The "People's"? Not so much.
"Yes, for other reasons, it's apparent that Feinstein doesn't belong in Congress, but this adds almost nothing."
It's clear to anybody who's honest about what they're seeing that she's not competent to be holding a position in congress. Hell, she's not aware enough of what's going on around her to be running a lemonade stand. Why would anybody think anything else needs to be added?
"Yet another “public servant” with a “luxurious beach house,” yet not enough sense to say “Aye” without multiple prompts."
As I started reading that, I thought it would finish up with "yet not enough sense to sell it before it's flooded due to Global Warming."
"The beach house is owned by Feinstein but there is litigation over it between Feinstein’s daughter and the Blum daughters? There’s something missing from this story."
I would guess that there's something in Feinstein's will about the real estate she and her husband owned and that she inherited when he died. Blum's daughters probably stand to inherit much more if the real estate is part of the estate when Feinstein dies. If she sells it while she is still alive, maybe she can benefit her daughter with that money in a way that excludes Blum's daughters. Or... the daughter, now that she has power of attorney, can benefit herself.
I'm not an expert in wills. I'm just speculating.
It's a $25 million house, so a lot of that is taxable capital gains if the house is sold while Feinstein is still alive. Why would her daughter want to do that? It's such a bad tax move that the Blum daughters might have a legal argument against the transaction.
If the sale occurs after Feinstein dies, there won't be capital gains. The current market value of the house will be the basis for tax purposes.
I'm not your lawyer, of course. If you have a situation like this, seek legal help.
From the NYT article:
"The suit also accused Mr. Blum’s daughters of seeking to use the beach house at Senator Feinstein’s expense and to limit her ability to sell off parts of the trust in order to increase the value of their inheritance after Senator Feinstein’s death."
It's been shameful to watch.
Trotting her out like Charlton Heston at the end of El Cid, dead but tied to his steed.
Yeah, she's diminished cognitively.
So was Ted Kennedy.
So was Strom Thurmond.
So was Phil Gramm.
What's ludicrous is Pennsylvania electing a Senator who was already suffering cognitively.
I think there is a step up in basis for inherited property but I also think there is a limit for how much can be inherited tax free. Google tells me the current federal exemption amount is $13 million.
@Althouse, much obliged for your comments 10:03 - 10:15. That makes sense
I'm 94 and I ain't signing no power of attorney.
Around here power of attorney can be limited or general. I suspect in this case it is limited to the financial matters involving certain aspects of the inheritance.
I didn't see that clarified in either the Times or the NY Post.
Which might mean that the Times intentionally put a negative spin on the matter because they also want her gone.
If DiFi owned the house with her now-deceased husband, it's possible her basis in the $25 million property is only $12.5 million. (IOW, did she get the benefit of a stepped-up basis when she inherited his 1/2 interest?)
In any event, capital gains are taxed at 15%. OTOH, if she DiFi dies owning the property, the applicable federal estate tax will be 40% on roughly $12 million of it. So it certainly might make sense to take the capital gains hit now in order to reduce the eventual estate tax liability.
(This is just based on my quick research. I would certainly defer to someone more knowledgeable.)
"Shame on her handlers. I don't know how these people can look at themselves in the mirror in the morning."
They don't look at the mirror at all. They don't have time. They're too busy looking at their portfolios.
"That's not her voting. They showed her in Congress the other day on video and Patty Murray told her how to vote. "Just say aye," Murray said repeatedly as Feinstein tried to talk. They wouldn't even let her speak. And so Feinstein said "Aye.""
If you watch that video clip for just a couple of seconds longer, you'll see Murray pop a Milkbone into DiFi's mouth. Though some forcefully deny that, insisting it was actually a sugar cube.
If they are fighting over the beach house they must not be too worried about global warming and the hottest month in infinity years.
I'm with Vault Dweller on this. One grants powers of attorney, which can be general or limited, and create in the grantee the power to act as attorney-in-fact for the grantor. But doing so does not oust the grantor of the ability to act on her own behalf, nor does it say anything about the grantor's capacity.
While I would tend to agree with AA, to cede (sic) power of attorney to someone is not as bad as it sounds, and can be done for several reasons (I've done it multiple times, particularly when dealing with property).
However, even though it's a small thing, based on Feinstein's behavior lately, it's mighty suspicious. Above and beyond the fact that a senator (government worker) on a senator's salary has a multimillion dollar mansion.
Feinstein is so old, her daughter is old enough for Social Security!
Capital gains tax on profit from a real estate sale occurs when the property is sold during the current tax year. But, if the property first passes through an estate (i.e., is inherited), then the cost basis changes from what the property was last purchased for (plus improvements), to what it's worth on the day of the death (or thereabouts). So, this particular tax avoidance trick doesn't affect the estate tax, but it wipes out most of the cap-gains tax, given how property has so greatly appreciated in recent years. Which, for a $25 million property held for many years, is a BIG deal. Most of the sale price would be gain, and for rich folk like the Blum-Feinsteins, it would be taxed at a pretty stiff rate, around 20%.
So, Diane F. may not know very much anymore, but she knows (or at least she's been told) that she doesn't want to sell that property and forego the stepped-up basis that would save her heirs a big bucket of money. Nobody's gonna bully her into that!
Oh come on folks. The question of whether Dianne Feinstein is competent to serve as a Senator is, or least should be, entirely divorced from the question of giving her daughter (a lawyer and retired Superior Court judge) control over nasty intrafamily litigation.
Assuming that Feinstein was say 20 years younger, apparently in control of her faculties, and performing her Senatorial duties in impeccable fashion, no one would question her decision to "let the lawyers handle it" where this dispute is concerned. Indeed they would applaud her decision not to let this legal hoohah distract her from her work.
Well, as they say in law school, that's the hypothetical.
What Jaydub said 👆🏽
Shame on her handlers. I don't know how these people can look at themselves in the mirror in the morning.
That’s easy. They don’t reflect in a mirror.
Why isn’t someone asking the obvious question: is Feinstein mentally competent to give her daughter her power of attorney? Her deceased husband’s daughters should have some fun and challenge the validity of the power of attorney.
When you're at 100% incompetent to perform your job in office, then an extra percent or two doesn't really add much.
The gerontocracy is really starting to show its age.
Powers of attorney are a standard part of estate planning. I use my mom's to manage her affairs.
Powers of attorney are a standard part of estate planning. I use my mom's to manage her affairs.
Powers of attorney are a standard part of estate planning. I use my mom's to manage her affairs.
"I use my mom's to manage her affairs."
Is your mom a senator? I don't want someone who needs to have her affairs managed by others to be managing mine by voting to approve legislation.
YMMV, of course.
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