THE UGLINESS – AT 11:18 A.M. ET:  The hatred of the president within the Democratic Party is so great that it may consume some of the party's more responsible leaders.  All four of them.  From the Los Angeles Times:   

At a time when the Democratic base is more restive than it has been in decades, Sen. Dianne Feinstein ignited a firestorm earlier this week when she refused to back the impeachment of President Trump and instead called for “patience” over his presidency.

The statements — provocative in Democratic circles and near-heretical in her hometown of San Francisco, where she made them — reflected a moderation and pragmatism that have been hallmarks of Feinstein’s career. But these qualities, after proving politically advantageous for decades, could become an albatross because of the state’s shifting demographics and political leanings as the 84-year-old decides whether to seek a sixth term.

Potential rivals are already circling.

Senate President Pro Tem Kevin De León lashed out at Feinstein’s remarks hours after she made them Tuesday at the Commonwealth Club, saying that women, children, people of color, immigrants and members of the LGBTQ community had little time for patience in the face of the president’s policies.

COMMENT:  Yeah, there it goes.  Let's all just be part of little groups.  And let's list them all in every speech.  Feinstein is known as one of the grown-ups in the Senate.  She has her origins in the party of Roosevelt, Truman and Kennedy.  But the new party doesn't have any use for that history.  It is only interested in grievance and identity politics.  Every citizen has a hyphen. 

In California, trashing a wise elder is easy.  The state is now so heavily Democratic that the party could elect a turkey sandwich as U.S. senator.  The recently elected Kamala Harris is 1) a woman, 2) part black, and 3) part Asian.  Isn't that wonderful?  A three-fer.  Does anything else count?  Harris has largely made a fool of herself in her opening months in Congress, acting rudely toward other senators, and obsessing over gender issues.  She often comes to committee hearings unprepared for anything else.  And yet she's already traveling the country as a possible 2020 presidential candidate.  Dianne Feinstein commented, "She just got here."  Sorry, Dianne, it's a new age. 

I still recall Eleanor Roosevelt rising in 1960 to publicly question whether John F. Kennedy was qualified to be president.  Kennedy had been in Congress 14 years, was on the Foreign Relations Committee, had been wounded in World War II, and had been author or co-author of several serious books, not books about himself.  And yet there were still questions.  Compare please to standards today, particularly in the Democratic Party.  Anyone can be president, as long as you've got the right set of grievances.

September 1, 2017