Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York pushed back against calls for him to step aside as Senate minority leader during an interview that aired Sunday.
Schumer came under fire from left-wing media figures and Democrats in Congress over his decision to help pass a GOP-backed spending bill to prevent a government shutdown, with Democratic Rep. Glenn Ivey of Maryland calling for Schumer’s replacement as leader of Senate Democrats Tuesday. Schumer told “Meet the Press” host Kristen Welker he was not planning to resign his leadership post.
“Look, I’m not stepping down, and let me just say this, Kristen. I knew when I cast my vote against this – against a government shutdown, that it would be, there would be a lot of controversy and there was, but let me tell you and your audience why I did it, why I felt it was so important.” Schumer said. “The [continuing resolution] was certainly bad… but a shutdown would be 15 or 20 times worse. Under a shutdown, the executive branch has sole power to determine what is, quote, ‘essential,’ and they can determine without any court supervision, the courts have ruled it’s solely up to the executive what to shut down.”
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“Sometimes when you’re a leader, you have to do things to avoid a danger that might come down the curve and I did it out of pure conviction as to what a leader should do,” Schumer added after claiming a shutdown would enable President Donald Trump and White House senior advisor Elon Musk to “eviscerate” the federal government.
Some Democrats argued in favor of denying Republicans the votes to overcome a filibuster on the continuing resolution, but Schumer argued it would be “a costly distraction” to the fight against President Donald Trump during his March 13 speech on the Senate floor.
“Some Democrats are saying they want leadership to show more fight in this moment. They think that’s what’s required. You were, of course, instrumental in urging President Biden out of the 2024 race when he wasn’t convinced. I’ve had conversations with Democrats, leader Schumer, who says this moment feels similar. Are you making the same mistake that President Biden did?” Welker asked Schumer.
“No. Absolutely not. I did this out of conviction,” Schumer responded. “And look, in my caucus we have a disagreement as to some people voted one way, some people voted the other, but we all agreed to respect each other because each side saw why the other side felt so strongly about it, and our caucus is united in fighting Donald Trump every step of the way. Our goal, our plan, which we’re united on is to make Donald Trump the quickest lame duck in modern history by showing how bad his policies are.”
Since Trump established the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in a Jan. 20 executive order, the agency has identified over $115 billion in savings, an average of $714.29 per taxpayer, according to its website.
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