You’d think that occupying a seat in the U.S. Senate would be easy, even fun. But if Governor Gavin Newsom has to find a replacement for Senator Dianne Feinstein, it could be painful.

Many qualified people would jump at the chance to join the world’s so-called largest consultative body, right?

Prestige, power, perks a career highlight, even if it was just a temporary job until someone else won the seat in the next election.

wrong Not in this particular case, at least not for people willing to adequately represent California in the way it deserves as the nation’s most populous state and fifth largest economy in the world.

Feinstein, 89, has not indicated she will leave the seat before her term ends at the end of next year. But she is being pressured by some in her own party to resign.

California’s longest-serving senator has been recovering from painful shingles for two months and has missed about 60 votes. They include several needed to approve President Biden’s obstructed nominations in federal court.

Feinstein says she works from home in San Francisco. But she can’t vote there. And her votes are desperately needed to move Biden’s agenda in a Democratic-controlled Senate with only a two-vote lead.

There is no timetable for Feinstein’s return to Washington.

Speculation about her dropping out began two years ago with reports of declining cognitive acuity. In February, Feinstein announced the expected: she would not run for a sixth term next year.

There was already a race to succeed her.

The question of whether Feinstein should and should retire before her term expires has been a hot topic among politicians. Her replacement until the next election would be chosen by the governor. But he doesn’t say much in public.

Newsom limited his options two years ago by promising to hire a black woman. There was still no black female senator. The last was Kamala Harris of California, who left to become vice president.

Newsom could have replaced Harris with another black woman, but chose an old ally, then-Secretary of State Alex Padilla, instead. The governor’s subsequent promise

clearly

was an attempt to appear disappointed Black women, an important democratic constitution.

It would now be politically untenable for Newsom to go back on his word, especially if he has national ambitions. Black politicians and voters may be relatively few in number

,

but they punch above their weight. Ask Biden which voting bloc saved his presidential campaign in the 2020 primary.

The most obvious choice for Newsom would be Representative Barbara Lee, 76, of Oakland, who has 25 years of congressional experience. She’s a bit more liberal than Newsom and most Californians, but that wouldn’t be her biggest problem with the governor.

Lee is one of the top three candidates in the 2024 Senate race. Her senatorial title could be a major campaign advantage. Newsom might find it unfair to the two

leading

Front runner representatives. Adam

B.

Schiff, 62, of Burbank and Katie Porter, 49, of Irvine to give Lee a boost.

What is wrong with that? He’s committed or not committed to getting a black female senator, says Aimee Allison, founder and president of She the People, an activist group pushing for more women of color to be elected.

Allison supports Lee.

If Newsom were to pass up Lee and elect another black woman to run for office, it would actually hurt Lee’s campaign. With two black women competing, their core bases would be divided. That risks the wrath of Lee’s supporters, including Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.

There is also another reality:

a

new 2024 Senate candidate would start her campaign far behind in organizing and fundraising, making a Newsom nomination less attractive than usual for an aspiring politician.

The primaries will be held earlier than usual on March 5. It’s late in the game for a new entry with low statewide name identification.

So, Newsom may want to appoint an acting senator, a black woman who would complete Feinstein’s term but agree not to run.

But, as I wrote, that would not be in keeping with the spirit of the governor’s promise. He seemed to promise to anoint a black woman as a full senator, not a temp.

Either way, it could be difficult to recruit an experienced legislator of the quality California deserves who would be willing to give up her current seat to become a short time.

Former Representative Bass, 69, would make a great senator, but she would never step down as LA mayor. Either way, that would risk political suicide just after voters elected her.

LA County Supervisor Holly Mitchell, 58, a former influential state legislator, has senatorial qualities. But Mitchell has said she’s not interested, either as a full-timer or as a temp. She is running for re-election next year.

San Francisco mayor London Breed, 48, hasn’t said much, but it wouldn’t make sense for her to step down as leader of a beautiful, if challenged, city to become a temporary senator. She is also running for re-election.

In addition to Lee, there are two other black female House members from California, both Angel

e

nos: 17-term Rep. Maxine Waters, 84, an outspoken liberal, and newly elected Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, 50. I don’t see either giving up

her chair their chairs

.

There is a relatively painless solution to the chair surrender dilemma. The governor could appoint either California Secretary of State Shirley Weber, 74, or newly elected comptroller Malia Cohen, 45, as acting senator and temporarily place a bureaucrat in her essentially ministerial job. Then he could return Weber or Cohen to her state post after next year’s election.

Or he could reach far for a non-politician janitor like Oprah Winfrey of Montecito.

That would be nice.