Many liberals want Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to no longer lead the Democratic caucus. But his fellow Senate Democrats aren't calling for his head just yet.
Criticism has mounted against Schumer after Democrats agreed to join Republicans in voting to reopen the government without securing an extension of expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies.
Schumer voted against the bill, which has not been lost on his colleagues.
"Chuck didn't want this to happen. And I sat with him in rooms as he tried to stop this from occurring. This has got to be a caucus-wide conversation," said Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., to Politico.
"Because if this is really how 10 or 15 members are going to regularly conduct business, it's hard for any leader to stop that from happening," Murphy continued.
While progressives push for his ouster or a primary challenge if he runs for a sixth term in 2028, Schumer has insisted he is focused on Democrats flipping the Senate in 2026 and making him majority leader, Politico reported.
There is no appetite in the Senate Democratic caucus for his immediate ouster, five people told Politico. Schumer has said he intends to run for leader when elections are held following the midterms.
"You can argue, and I can make the case, that Chuck Schumer has done a lot of bad things, but I think getting rid of him — who's going to replace him?" Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said in a recent interview with MSNBC's Rachel Maddow.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has also continued to back Schumer, saying he believed his fellow New Yorker was effective as minority leader.
Schumer said criticisms from progressives are simply part of the job, Politico reported. Adam Green, the leader of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, questioned Schumer's control of his caucus.
"[Schumer] and 39 other members of his caucus ... all believed that one thing was the correct strategy and that he was able to get undermined by eight outliers," Green said. "Well, what does that say about his leadership?"
In interviews, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., declined to publicly back Schumer.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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