Dianne Feinstein has finally left the Senate, and the hard way, too.

As the Los Angeles Times wrote:

Feinstein, 90, was a towering political figure for decades. She was the oldest member of the U.S. Senate when she died, and questions about her mental capacity shadowed her final years in office, blemishing her reputation and forcing her to repeatedly fend off calls to resign.

“I’d put my record up against anyone’s,” Feinstein said in a statement as she neared her 89th birthday in April 2022, after a series of news accounts that questioned her ability to do her job.

She ultimately bowed to age and political reality, announcing in February that she would not seek reelection in 2024 to a sixth full term. By then, the race to succeed her was already underway.

A fellow Californian, John Steinbeck, wrote in “Travels with Charley” about chatting up an itinerant thespian he met on the road who declined a refill of the author’s whiskey.

“No,” he said. “No more for me. I learned long ago that the most important and valuable of acting techniques is the exit.”

It’s a tough lesson to learn. Feinstein had her successes and her failures, but for now, at least, all people will remember is that in the end, she overstayed her welcome.