WASHINGTON – Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., continues to face backlash from members of his party after he voted in favor of a spending bill that averted a government shutdown and handed President Donald Trump and Republicans a victory.
Schumer has defended himself in interviews, arguing that a shutdown would have been much worse for Americans. But some Democrats have piled onto their criticisms of the New York Democrat in press conferences and town halls with their constituents.
One of his harshest attacks came from Rep. Glenn Ivey, D-Md., who called for Schumer to step down. He said at a town hall in Maryland on Tuesday that Schumer did not meet the moment like House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., did.
“I respect Chuck Schumer. I think he had a great, long-standing career. He’s done a lot of great things” Ivey told constituents. “But I’m afraid that it may be time for the Senate Democrats to pick new leadership as we move forward.”
Jeffries and other top House Democrats urged Senate Democrats to oppose the spending bill. Eight Democrats and one independent ultimately joined Schumer in voting to advance the bill.
“I think Hakeem Jeffries will continue to hold the House Democratic caucus together..it’s the Senate that’s the open question,” Ivey said. “And ironically they’re the ones that actually have the leverage. So if we can make sure that we get the right leadership in the Senate to get it done this time, and hold them together and vote with the House Democrats, we can actually have an impact.”
Axios reported that Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., also nodded her head yes when asked whether Schumer should step down or retire at a town hall on Tuesday. A grassroots Democratic group Pass the Torch and the liberal group Indivisible have also called for him to step aside as Senate minority leader.
Schumer doesn’t run for reelection until 2028. But some House Democrats and New York politicos have urged New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to mount a primary challenge against Schumer.
Other Democrats have railed against Schumer, but stopped short of saying whether he should still lead the party in the Senate.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., in a town hall on Tuesday said that Schumer was “wrong” in backing the Republican crafted bill, according to the Boston Globe.
But she did not respond to questions on whether he was still the right person for the Democratic leadership role.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, at a press conference on Tuesday said that while she has confidence in Schumer as Senate Democratic leader, she adds, “I myself don’t give away anything for nothing. I think that’s what happened the other day.”
She told reporters that Democrats could have negotiated with Republicans on a bipartisan spending bill. “They may not have agreed to it but at least the public would have seen they’re not agreeing to it,” she said.
Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said at the press conference that House and Senate Democrats will have to be unified the next time a pivotal vote comes around. “We’re going to have to figure out a way where leadership in the House and leadership in the Senate is on the same page,” he said.
Schumer told “CBS Mornings” on Tuesday that he is the best leader for the Senate, arguing that he is the “best at winning Senate seats.”
He also said that a government shutdown would “have been the greatest disaster.”
“We would have had half the federal government we have now,” Schumer said. “So I thought I did the thing a leader should do: Even when people don’t see the danger around the curve, my job was to alert people to it – and I knew I’d get some bullets.”
On The View, Schumer reiterated his message, saying: “I should be the leader.”
Schumer canceled multiple East Coast events promoting his new book due to “security concerns” from protests in each city.
Contributing: Riley Beggin, USA TODAY
