Elizabeth Warren Calls On Party To ‘Fight’ GOP During Government Funding Negotiations
'Power we have to fight back'
Progressives rally as pressure mounts to primary Schumer
Progressive lawmakers have hit the ground running, with Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York rallying alongside independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont in the swing state of Nevada. However, their efforts are being overshadowed by the most recent shutdown showdown, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is feeling the heat.
Ever since President Donald Trump took office, Democrats have worked overtime to make the DOGE and Elon Musk the focal point of their political attacks.
Most recently, Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders held a joint rally in Nevada Thursday to "fight oligarchy," a sentiment that was embraced by onlookers. Coupled with the base's desire for a progressive party were calls to primary Schumer and shed old-guard Democrats.
The Democratic Party has lacked a political compass since its overwhelming defeat in November.
"Primary Chuck!" supporters shouted.
Schumer has caught a lot of heat over the last week after he caved and voted to advance a Republican-led continuing resolution after initially signaling that he was in favor of a shutdown. As a result of this reversal, several prominent Democrats like former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) disavowed the move.
While Schumer has embarked on a media tour to mitigate the damage, the Democratic base has made calls for new representation.
“We need a Democratic Party that fights harder for us too,” Ocasio-Cortez said at the rally. She also encouraged the crowd to vote for "brawlers," who she said "are the ones who can actually win against Republicans."
To her point, the Democratic Party has lacked a political compass since its overwhelming defeat in November.
Since then, the Democratic identity has diminished and the party has fractured, leading to irreconcilable differences between lawmakers like Schumer and Sanders, and it's these very differences that may cost them elections in the future.
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House Democrat takes shots at Schumer following shutdown fiasco: 'Maybe he needs to go'
Democrats on Capitol Hill are unhappy after Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) mishandled last week's shutdown showdown, and they aren't hiding it.
Democratic Rep. Glenn Ivey of Maryland is the latest lawmaker to take shots at the party leader. While Schumer has spent the last few days in damage-control mode, Ivey told Politico Wednesday that Democrats "can’t afford to miss the moment again."
In response to the massive blowback, Schumer has spent the last few days on defense.
“If he can get himself together and come — you know, get right on this vote, and we get another shot at it, OK,” Ivey said. “But if he’s going to do the same thing again when this bill comes up six months from now, we can’t afford that.”
After the House passed the Republican-led funding bill on March 11, the Senate was tasked with keeping the government open before the March 14 deadline. In order to vote on the continuing resolution, the bill needed to clear a procedural vote called cloture, which required 60 votes.
In other words, Democrats had the decision to reach across the aisle and join Republicans to pass the funding bill, which was backed by President Donald Trump, or to dig their heels in and shut down the government.
Schumer initially signaled his support for a shutdown but later changed his position in favor of passing the CR to avoid a shutdown. Schumer argued that a shutdown would be worse than the funding bill, but his reversal sparked outrage throughout the Democratic Party. In the end, 10 Democrats joined 52 Republicans to advance the bill.
“We’ve got a limited number of shots at being able to fight back against the Trump administration and what they’re doing,” Ivey said. “We can’t afford to miss the moment again.”
Several prominent Democrats, like former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), denounced Schumer's approach, and the rank and file largely felt the same. Ivey echoed his colleagues' concerns about Schumer, saying, "Maybe he needs to go."
“Hakeem met the moment last week,” Ivey said. “Schumer missed it.”
In response to the massive blowback, Schumer has spent the last few days on defense. Schumer postponed his book tour and spent the weekend doing several media hits in an attempt to preserve his reputation. Even still, Democrats aren't buying it.
“Everybody doesn’t have to do the same temperament, everybody doesn’t have to do the same messaging,” Ivey said, “as long as they’re doing what they need to do to win their seats.”
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Schumer tries to stay afloat as Democratic Party sinks
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is scrambling to keep his career afloat following another disastrous week for Democrats.
Schumer's most recent political fiasco left Democrats more divided than ever. Last week, House Republicans passed their funding bill, which President Donald Trump endorsed, with all but one Democrat voting against it. Although the Trump-backed bill made it through, House Democrats were at least unified in their opposition.
But once the continuing resolution made its way to the Senate, Democrats changed their tune.
'We have a lot of good people,' Schumer said on CBS Tuesday. 'But I am the best at winning Senate seats.'
The Republican majority in the Senate needed Democratic support to ensure the CR cleared a procedural vote, ultimately averting a government shutdown. With the Friday deadline fast approaching, Democrats were left to decide if they wanted to throw their support behind the Trump-endorsed CR or to vote for a shutdown.
Schumer initially signaled his support for a shutdown, following in the footsteps of his colleagues in the House. But as the pressure mounted, Schumer reversed his position and said he would instead be voting to advance the CR. This decision sparked outrage within the Democratic Party, with prominent figures like former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.) denouncing the tactic. In the end, 10 Senate Democrats joined 52 Republicans to advance the funding bill.
Although Schumer averted a shutdown, his Democratic Party remained fractured.
In the aftermath, the Democratic Party's favorability dropped to record lows, and many pinned the blame on Schumer. The overall reception of last week's political theatre was so negative, Schumer even postponed his highly anticipated book tour until the dust settled.
Even still, Schumer attempted to assure Democrats that he was still the "best leader for the Senate."
"We have a lot of good people," Schumer said on CBS Tuesday. "But I am the best at winning Senate seats."
Schumer continued his damage-control media tour, making an appearance on "The View" Tuesday. When the hosts pressed him about his leadership, Schumer tried to pin the blame on Trump.
"I wake up at three in the morning sometimes so worried about the future of the country under these oligarchs!” Schumer said. "We are fighting them tooth and nail in every way that we can, but you've got to fight them smart."
"I felt an obligation to stop it," Schumer added.
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Democrats Should Definitely Keep Picking Fights They Can’t Win
Democrats have apparently decided that in place of advocating policies that might actually help Americans, they’re simply going to scream “No!” to everything President Trump does and hope something happens. It’s obviously working to stunning effect. And by “working,” I mean continuing to expose how deeply irrelevant they’re making themselves. The latest episode came Saturday […]Senate Dems side with Schumer, sidestepping government shutdown
Senate Democrats caved and voted alongside Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), reaching across the aisle to pass the Republican-led continuing resolution Friday just hours before the funding deadline.
The CR advanced in a 62-38 vote, with 10 Democrats joining 52 Republicans to pass the funding bill.
In addition to Schumer, Democratic Sens. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Dick Durbin of Illinois, Brian Schatz of Hawaii, Gary Peters of Michigan, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, and independent Sen. Angus King of Maine voted in support of the bill. Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky was the only GOP senator to vote against the CR.
Although the CR passed the House with a simple majority on Tuesday, the Senate required 60 votes for the CR to clear a procedural hurdle known as cloture. Because Republicans hold just 53 seats, they needed Democrats to join them and avert a shutdown.
'Democrats must not buy in to this false choice. We must fight back for a better way.'
While Democrats ultimately aided Republicans, many were furious with Schumer and other senators who sided with him to pass a Trump-backed funding bill.
Democrats, including Schumer, initially signaled that they would vote in lockstep to sink the CR and shut down the government. Many Democrats also proposed an alternative 30-day funding extension, which would allow them to negotiate a different CR. But Democrats are the minority party in both the House and the Senate, making this an unrealistic option.
Schumer quickly pivoted from his original advocacy for a shutdown and instead urged his colleagues to pass the CR, arguing that a shutdown is worse than an unfavorable funding package.
"It's not really a decision; it's a Hobson's choice," Schumer said in a floor speech Thursday. "Either proceed with the bill before us, or risk Donald Trump rowing America into the chaos of a shutdown. This, in my view, is no choice at all. While the CR bill is very bad, the potential for a shutdown has consequences for America that are much, much worse."
Schumer's reversal outraged his Democratic colleagues, sparking murmurs of potential primary challengers like Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.
"I think it is a huge slap in the face, and I think that there's a wide sense of betrayal," Ocasio-Cortez told reporters Thursday.
It wasn't just the rank and file who were upset with Schumer. Without explicitly naming him, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) both disavowed Schumer's approach.
"House Democrats will not be complicit," Jeffries said. "We remain strongly opposed to the partisan spending bill under consideration in the Senate."
"Donald Trump and Elon Musk have offered the Congress a false choice between a government shutdown or a blank check that makes a devastating assault on the well-being of working families across America," Pelosi said in a statement Friday. "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."
"Democrats must not buy in to this false choice," Pelosi added. "We must fight back for a better way."
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