Sen. Dianne Feinstein remembered for her courage, integrity at heartfelt San Francisco memorial
SAN FRANCISCO – The late Senator Dianne Feinstein was celebrated in a memorial service Thursday, held on the steps of San Francisco's City Hall where her remarkable political career began.
Security was high as invited attendees passed through a screening upon arrival before taking their seats in front of City Hall. There were also a number of street closures in effect around the building to accommodate the hundreds who were seated on Post Street for the memorial in addition to a wide security perimeter around the event.
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Officials had planned to make the service open to the public with standing space in Civic Center Plaza, but announced early Wednesday evening that it would be a private event due to security concerns regarding the many dignitaries in attendance.
Adam Russell, a spokesperson for Feinstein's office, confirmed that the service would still be held outside, but noted the security perimeter would be too far back for the general public to see and hear.
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Feinstein was remembered by friends and colleagues as a pioneer whose political journey was marked by many firsts. Besides being the first president of San Francisco's Board of Supervisors and the city's first female mayor, Feinstein was the first woman elected to represent California in the U.S. Senate alongside Barbara Boxer in 1992.
Around 1,500 guests were invited to the private ceremony. Dozens of members of Congress flew into San Francisco to attend the service including Sen. Alex Padilla, who is now the senior senator from California, Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Congressman Adam Schiff and Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren among others. California Governor Gavin Newsom and his recent appointment to fill Feinstein's seat, Laphonza Butler, and former governor and Oakland mayor Jerry Brown were also in attendance.
Vice President Kamala Harris, Senate Majority Leader and New York Senator Chuck Schumer, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and Sen. Feinstein's granddaughter, Eileen Mariano were also in attendance and spoke at the memorial.
Mayor Breed was the first speaker, welcoming those gathered to San Francisco City Hall.
"Today, we honor the life of Senator Feinstein. That is her official title. It's how Californians and people all over the world knew her. But to us, to San Franciscans, she was Mayor Dianne Feinstein," Breed said before remembering how, as a 13-year-old French horn player at Benjamin Franklin School, she first met Feinstein.
"Over the years, we became Mayor Feinstein's band. Whenever there was an important event or activity, she chose us to perform. We played at City Hall and at the Super Bowl celebrations. We proudly wore our band sweaters that she bought for us and Mayor Feinstein always took the time to talk to us, to tell us how amazing we were and to remind us that we were her band," Breed said.
The mayor also spoke about how Feinstein provided an example of strong leadership for young women to follow.
"Dianne Feinstein showed us the meaning of San Francisco's motto, 'Gold in peace, iron in war.' She showed us a world where women lead, where we lift each other up so that girls like me could follow in her footsteps," Breed said.
A recorded message from President Joe Biden praised Feinstein for her character and toughness.
"She was always tough, prepared, rigorous, compassionate. She always served the people of California and our nation for the right reasons," Biden said.
After that message, Vice President Kamala Harris took the stage.
"Dianne Feinstein was an icon of California. She was an American patriot, a giant of the Senate, and a dear friend to Doug and me. She was also a student of history, a gifted—and I'll add, very generous—artist, and a passionate leader. Simply put, she was a force…She was recognized around the world as a leader, a standard-bearer of America and of American values," Harris said. "Dianne diligently focused on the impacts on real people, not ideology; substance, not showmanship; results, not rhetoric."
Harris went on to laud Feinstein for her courage as a public servant and her fierce "defense of the Constitution and the security of the American people."
Harris also remembered the celebration in San Francisco after both Feinstein and Boxer were elected to the U.S. Senate on Nov. 3, 1993, recalling the night that she, "a young prosecutor in the Alameda County District Attorney's Office," left her Oakland home and drove across the Bay Bridge in her Toyota Corolla to witness that historic night.
"Diane, the women of America have come a long way. Our country has come a long way and you helped move the ball forward. Our nation salutes you, Diane," Harris said.
She also remembered how Feinstein welcomed her to the Senate in 2017.
"With one hand, she presented me with a glass of California Chardonnay, and with the other, a binder full of her draft bills," Harris said.
Sen. Chuck Schumer opened his comments with a memory about Feinstein's drive and tenacity, recalling how the senator decided against seeking medical attention after injuring her ankle during a morning walk the week of her signature Lake Tahoe Summit, an event aimed at preserving the lake for future generations.
"Years later, she looked back on that morning and remembered hearing a bone pop but chose to finish her day before even thinking about treatment. It turns out, it was a pretty significant fracture," remembered Schumer. "I asked how she got through the day, she only offered three words: 'I just did.'"
"There are many adjectives that rightly describe Dianne Feinstein: strong, unflappable, winning, fierce, practical, earnest," Schumer continued. "But one quality above all stands out in my mind and will forever set Dianne apart: integrity."
At some points of the service, the speakers were briefly drowned out by the Blue Angels flying overhead during their Fleet Week practice run. During her remarks that focused on her personal relationship with Feinstein as both a colleague and neighbor, Pelosi referred to the jets roaring above.
"It's what Dianne wants. That's what we get!" Pelosi said with a laugh.
Pelosi also showed her sense of humor when discussing the wisdom Feinstein would impart to co-workers.
"We all have gotten great advice from Dianne," Pelosi said. "But the most constant advice I ever got from her -- again and again -- was, 'Nancy, you don't always have to be the one going out on the attack. Let some other people do that from time to time. Why don't you do that?'"
The Speaker Emerita also spoke of Feinstein's impact in both San Francisco and Washington D.C.
"And she has a lasting legacy. From the cable cars, the breast cancer stamp to the assault-weapons ban to Team Tahoe...the list goes on and on," Pelosi said of her friend. "From the U.S. Capitol back to San Francisco, where Dianne Feinstein is our forever mayor."
Final respects were paid by Feinstein's granddaughter, Eileen Mariano, who listed the contributions Feinstein made to the city of San Francisco, the state of California, and the United States.
"My grandmother saved the cable car and rebuilt Pier 39, she supported her people during the HIV/AIDS epidemic," said Mariano. "She saved Joshua Tree, Death Valley and Lake Tahoe. And she spoke against torture and assault weapons."