Feinstein trying for 5th full term? Invites go out for fundraiser

Feinstein has not announced her plans, but news of a fundraiser created a buzz in California’s Democratic establishment, which has been debating whether the former San Francisco mayor — now the oldest member of the U.S. Senate — will pursue a fifth term in the 2018 election, when she will be age 85.

The invite to “join Sen. Feinstein for dinner” on Tuesday, Sept. 29, at Bistro Bis was issued by “Linda Hall Daschle, the honorable Tom Daschle and Baker Donelson Berkowitz PAC” for an event benefiting “Feinstein for Senate 2018,” according to a copy obtained by The Chronicle.

Feinstein spokesman Tom Mentzer downplayed the invitation, saying the senator has been holding fundraisers for the 2018 campaign since she was last elected two years ago.

Republican Bill Whalen, an adviser to former Gov. Pete Wilson and fellow at the Hoover Institution, said Feinstein could be simply sending a message.

“She is keenly aware of the fact that people are wondering if she might be stepping down, and you don’t want to be portrayed as a lame duck,” he said.

Boxer announced her retirement earlier this year, prompting Democratic Attorney General Kamala Harris to declare immediately for the seat.

[...] Harris has been joined by Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Santa Ana, former state GOP chairman Tom Del Becarro and Republican Assemblyman Rocky Chavez, R-Oceanside, in the race.

[...] chances for a Senate slot are rare in the nation’s most populous state, Whalen notes.

Bob Mulholland, the veteran campaign adviser for the California Democratic Party who has known Feinstein for decades, says that’s not part of Feinstein’s equation.