Sen. Adam Schiff, a primary antagonist of President Donald Trump, marks one year in U.S. Senate

When Adam Schiff was sworn in as the junior U.S. senator from California one year ago, he’d already spent 12 terms in the House of Representatives and was arguably best known for leading House impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump during Trump’s first term.

In the 12 months since joining the upper chamber of Congress, Schiff has continued to make a name for himself as a chief antagonist – and a prime target – of Trump, calling out actions by the president that Schiff, a Democrat and former federal prosecutor, considers unconstitutional or unethical.

He’s embraced his role as one of the Democratic Party’s most vocal critics of Trump – even if it’s meant drawing the ire of the president.

“We have to defend our democracy. We have to stand up to any president – Democrat or Republican – who abuses their power, who tries to silence and intimidate their critics. … We all have to stand up to that or there won’t be much of a rule of law left,” Schiff said during an interview last week.

“Yes, I’m high on the president’s enemy list. I’m proud to be there,” he added.

At the same time, during a speech on the Senate floor the day before, Schiff spoke of the idea of Democrats and Republicans working together to get more homes built; bring down the cost of groceries, utilities and childcare; provide affordable health care and put forward a “fair and humane immigration system.”

“I am a proud Democrat. But I’m also willing to work with anyone to advance those efforts – including that guy at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue who doesn’t care for me very much and who I’m not particularly fond of either,” he said in reference to Trump.

Schiff and other Democrats have been the subject of investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice over alleged mortgage fraud this past year. Schiff, who hasn’t been charged, has denied the allegations and accused the Trump administration of political retribution.

When asked about Schiff’s first year in the Senate, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement that the legislator – whom she referred to by a nickname – “clearly suffers from a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome that clouds his every thought” and accused Schiff of focusing more “on his hatred of the president than … on the issues that matter” to Californians.

She suggested that Trump delivered more for Californians in the past year than Schiff, “including by completing the fastest debris removal effort in history to provide much-needed assistance to California communities” following the January wildfires in Southern California.

California Democrats have largely credited the Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the record pace of cleanup. At the same time, Schiff and other Democrats have suggested that Trump has held up sending additional federal dollars to California for projects like rebuilding infrastructure.

In terms of Schiff’s legislative record in the Senate, none of the 19 bills he introduced since January, not including resolutions, has become law or even passed out of the Senate.

Although it’s not out of the ordinary for bills to not have passed out of their originating house at this point – the halfway mark of a two-year congressional term – political observers don’t expect Schiff’s bills to gain much traction even next year since Republicans control both houses of Congress and the White House.

Schiff this year also introduced seven resolutions, of which one – to honor the life of Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys legend who died in June, as a rock and roll and pop icon – was agreed to in the Senate. Resolutions generally express an opinion of the legislature, which is different from bills that propose new laws.

Schiff also co-sponsored 250 other bills, not counting resolutions. Of those 250 bills, just one, introduced by Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, to prohibit the online posting of intimate images of individuals if they don’t consent to it, has been signed into law.

“He (Schiff) has introduced quite a bit of legislation. But as a member of the minority (party), most of the bills aren’t going anywhere,” said political analyst Dan Schnur, a former Republican who said he switched to “no party preference” more than a decade ago.

Similar to Schiff, none of the 14 bills that first-term Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat from Michigan, introduced this year has passed out of Senate committees. Of the 131 other bills she co-sponsored, not counting resolutions, only one has become law.

Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio introduced 20 pieces of legislation. None has been signed into law. One resolution – in recognition of the Ohio State University football team – was agreed to in the Senate.

However, of the bills he co-sponsored, two have been signed into law and three others have at least passed out of the Senate. In addition, two joint resolutions he co-sponsored have become law. Joint resolutions, unlike other types of resolutions, carry the weight of law if signed by the president.

Last week, Schiff’s office highlighted the work he’s done since he was first sworn in to the U.S. Senate on Dec. 9, 2024, to replace the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein. (Feinstein died in office in September 2023, and Laphonza Butler was appointed interim senator until Schiff’s election the following year.)

The senator’s contributions, according to his office, included advocating for lower costs for Americans and proposing legislation to address the state’s housing and insurance crises, improve disaster resiliency, and support communities and first responders following the January wildfires in Los Angeles County.

Examples of actions taken by Schiff, according to his office, include:

• Visiting 25 of California’s 58 counties, up and down the state.

• Making sure more than $8 million went back to California residents in the form of overdue tax refunds, retroactive Social Security benefits and other payments. In addition, he secured more than $32.45 million from Congress to fund local projects in California, such as new fire equipment in Bishop and upgraded generators in Mono County.

• Introducing the Housing BOOM Act, to encourage a housing supply boom, by making the largest-ever expansion of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) and providing grants to incentivize the development of affordable housing.

• Introducing legislation to study the impact of artificial intelligence on the workforce to prevent job losses while promoting technological development and innovation.

• Supporting multiple pieces of legislation to counter tariffs imposed by Trump that his office said are driving up costs and hurting farmers and small businesses.

Political consultant Michael Bustamante also credited Schiff for advocating on issues of climate change, health care, immigration and the economy.

“Those are things Californians care about. And he’s on the right side of that ledger,” said Bustamante, a partner at California Strategies who switched from being a registered Democrat to “no party preference” about 15 years ago but still works for Democratic candidates.

Like Schnur, Bustamante pointed to the hyper-partisanship in Congress.

“The fact that he (Schiff) hasn’t been able to pass legislation that he authored is no surprise,” Bustamante said.

For his part, Schiff – who finds the Senate to be “much more collegial” than the House – noted that the first legislation he introduced in the upper chamber was a bipartisan bill co-sponsored by Republican Sen. Tim Sheehy of Montana to offer a tax credit to homeowners who harden their homes against fires and other natural disasters. The bill was introduced in April, three months after the Southern California wildfires, but hasn’t advanced out of a Senate committee.

Nevertheless, Rep. Judy Chu, a Democrat who represents Altadena and surrounding communities impacted by the Eaton fire, said Schiff’s efforts to support fire victims has been meaningful.  He’s introduced a number of bills to support disaster victims or to combat future disasters, including, Chu noted, a mortgage relief bill. Chu has also introduced a House version of that bill, though neither version has passed out of their respective houses.

Last month, Schiff and Chu also toured the Eaton Fire Collaborative Center, a resource hub in Altadena for fire survivors, and heard from families still trying to recover.

“Sen. Schiff has stood side-by-side with the survivors from the very beginning,” Chu said.

Not everyone is quick to sing Schiff’s praises, though.

Matt Klink, a Republican consultant who owns Klink Campaigns, Inc., described the senator as “the Democratic mouthpiece” who’s obsessed with going after Trump.

“He’s like a dog in search of a bone. He never lets up in spite of other important things that are happening in this country. I think most Republicans see Adam Schiff as a waste of space in the United States Senate,” he said.

Schiff is part of a new breed of senators, Klink said, who are more interested in making the news than legislating.

“Schiff will go on TV, and he’ll rail against Donald Trump,” Klink said. “That’s not a legislative role. That’s an overt, partisan attack-dog role.” Cruz, the Republican senator from Texas, is a similar example on the other side of the aisle, Klink charged.

“It’s not a plus,” he said – though he also acknowledged Schiff’s “political chops.”

“He’s tough as nails, and he’s really smart, and he is really good on TV,” Klink said. “You have to respect the guy. He’s not a lightweight.”

Schnur, who teaches political messaging at UC Berkeley and USC, said since Schiff can’t get many bills passed, he’s decided to capitalize on his reputation as a strong Trump critic.

“Most first-year senators tend to keep a fairly low profile. But most rookies don’t come to the Senate with the type of celebrity status that Schiff has brought with him from the Trump impeachment. He’s been exceptionally high-profile for a first-year member,” Schnur said.

Schiff serves on the influential Senate Judiciary Committee, whose members decide whether to advance a presidential nominee to the full Senate for confirmation. Earlier this year, Schiff placed a hold on Trump’s nomination of Ed Martin as a U.S. attorney, leading to the president assigning Martin instead to another role within the U.S. Department of Justice.

Schiff also serves on the Senate Agriculture Committee, becoming the first U.S. senator from California in more than 30 years to sit on that body. He said he’s proud of that assignment, given California’s standing as the top agricultural state in the country.

He’s also proud, he said, to have successfully advocated against the closure of eight U.S. Department of Agriculture offices in California, a move the Trump administration considered earlier this year.

He summed up his job as a U.S. senator as both advocating for policies and funding that would be beneficial to Californians, as well as standing up against the Trump administration when necessary.

“First and foremost, I want to deliver for my constituents in California. But it has become necessary to fight so many destructive actions by the administration. My constituents are counting on me to do that, too,” Schiff said.

“So,” he added, “I’m going to do everything I can to deliver for my constituents. But that also means that I’m going to stand up for their rights, stand up for democracy, no matter what that takes.”