2009 SPEAKERSMODERATORS

is California’s senior US senator. In the 111th Congress, Feinstein assumed the chairmanship of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, where she oversees the nation’s 16 intelligence agencies; she is the first female US senator to hold that position. Feinstein is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee, where she chairs the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies. Feinstein also serves on the Senate Rules and Administration Committee, which she chaired during the 110th Congress. In that capacity, Feinstein was the first woman to chair the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies and presided over the Inauguration of President Barack Obama on January 20, 2009