Chuck Schumer draws ire of Democrats, liberal media voices after voting to avert shutdown
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., was denounced by members of his own party as well as liberal media commentators after he voted to support a Republican spending bill to avoid a government shutdown.
"I think, again, that this was a fight that needed to happen, and it didn’t happen because of Chuck Schumer. If you think about it, Republicans would have had to own that government shutdown. They have control of everything, and it would have been squarely on their backs, and I am not alone in this opinion," ABC's "The View" co-host Sunny Hostin said Monday.
Schumer voted with Republicans to pass a continuing resolution (CR) and avert a shutdown on Friday, arguing that a government closure would have been a "gift" for President Donald Trump.
Fellow co-hosts Sara Haines and Alyssa Farah Griffin agreed with Schumer, arguing the senator made the right decision and debating their co-hosts on why a shutdown would have been worse.
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Speaking directly to the senator during his Tuesday appearance on "The View," Hostin accused Schumer of having "caved" to Republicans. "It gives me no pleasure to say this to you, because we are friends, but I think you caved," Hostin told Schumer. "I think you and nine other Democrats caved."
Griffin later asked him, "Do you believe that the party has confidence in you to continue to serve as its leader? And as somebody who was influential in helping Biden’s decision to step aside, do you think it might be time for you, too?"
Schumer insisted he would not be stepping down and would continue to lead the Democrats, dismissing concerns from members of his own party.
During a Tuesday interview on "CBS Mornings," co-host Gayle King told Schumer that members of his own party don't trust his leadership and are saying "it's time for you to go."
Former Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin compared Schumer to former President Biden during a weekend conversation on MSNBC, suggesting that he needed to step away.
"Let me be blunt. President Biden stayed around too long and we got Donald Trump. If Chuck Schumer stays along, the democracy may be gone. It’s not simply that they have to have a conversation within the caucus. Chuck Schumer needs to go," she told MSNBC host Jonathan Capehart on Sunday.
"He is the wrong man at the wrong time. He gave an interview with The New York Times that was even worse than you imagine. He was doddering. He was cranky. He was insisting he had done the right thing. He was recycling a rationalization for the shutdown that was completely bogus," Rubin said.
Other headlines also suggested Schumer was facing a "Biden moment."
Facing record-low favorability ratings and struggling to counter Trump, many Democrats believe the party should have voted against the spending bill and allow the government to shut down.
"There's actually little that the Senate Minority Leader can say, and the 10 Democrats that voted with the Republicans can say, to appease somebody like me. I'm going to change my registration to Independent," MSNBC host Symone Sanders Townsend said on Saturday.
"They blew it. The Democratic Tea Party was born the same day that Chuck Schumer took to that podium to read that very well-crafted statement that told us he folded like a paper napkin," she added.
"The reality here is there was no message, no strategy, and, at the end of the day, no leadership. And this is really a black mark, I think, on Chuck Schumer," former Democratic lawmaker Donna Edwards said during a Saturday discussion on MSNBC. "You cannot signal on Wednesday that you want to fight, and then on Thursday, you cave. And so now Republicans know that all they have to do is play Democrats, and it will work."
MSNBC host Alicia Menendez noted during the same discussion that some Democrats were privately urging Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., to primary Schumer.
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Following Schumer’s pledge to vote for the CR, other Democratic lawmakers, including Ocasio-Cortez, also shredded him for it. Ocasio-Cortez told anchor Jake Tapper on Thursday that Schumer’s move was "a tremendous mistake."
"And so, to me, it is almost unthinkable why Senate Democrats would vote to hand the few pieces of leverage that we have away for free, when we’ve been sent here to protect Social Security, protect Medicaid, and protect Medicare," she added.
Schumer dismissed the possibility of a primary challenge from the progressive lawmaker during an interview with The New York Times following his vote to avoid a shutdown.
"That's a long time away," Schumer told Times reporter Lulu Garcia-Navarro.
"I am focused on bringing Trump's numbers down, his popularity down, exposing what he has done to America and what he will do," Schumer said. "That's my focus right now. You know, three years from now is a long way to speculate. I believe that my hard work against Trump will pay off."
While discussing the interview on CNN, Garcia-Navarro said Schumer was in a "difficult position."
"But I have to say, I’ve heard from a lot of people, they don’t know that he survives this," she said.
DEM HEARD SCREAMING AT COLLEAGUES DESPITE SCHUMER’S UNITY CLAIM AS SHUTDOWN LOOMS
Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, told CNN on Sunday that Schumer's argument in favor of avoiding a government shutdown was "absolutely wrong."
When asked if Senate Democrats should replace Schumer, Crockett responded, "I think Senate Democrats have to sit down and take a look and decide whether or not Chuck Schumer is the one to lead in this moment."
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also criticized Schumer's decision.
"Let’s be clear: neither is a good option for the American people. But this false choice that some are buying instead of fighting is unacceptable," she said.
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Senators voted 54-46 to pass the stopgap spending bill, which only needed 51 votes to be approved. Nearly all Republicans backed the measure; however, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and most Democrats opposed it. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine, who caucuses with the Democrats, also voted to pass the bill.
Fox News' Gabriel Hays and Julia Johnson contributed to this report.