The feud between former Washington roommates Chuck Schumer and Dick Durbin escalated on Tuesday when the spokesmen for both Democratic senators clashed over a supposed power-sharing agreement.
Durbin's office claims Schumer had agreed last week to back him to stay on as the party's whip when Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid retires next year, according to
Politico. But Schumer's office denied such a deal had taken place.
Durbin and Schumer both admit that they had a conversation on Friday, during which Durbin said he would support Schumer's bid to replace Reid as the leading Democrat in the Senate chamber.
But the senators disagree on whether Schumer, of New York, said he would support Durbin, of Illinois, as the party's whip in 2017, according to the political news website.
"When Sen. Durbin took Sen. Schumer aside and told him that he would not run for leader, the two senators agreed to support one another," said Ben Marter, a spokesman for Durbin. "Schumer as leader and Durbin as whip. And they shook hands on it."
But Schumer's spokesman Matt House insisted, "that never happened, and they know it."
On hearing House's comment, Marter hit back, saying, "that's what a deal is."
The confrontation is the latest show of hostilities in the long-standing rivalry between the senators, who lived in a Capitol Hill house together for years while climbing up the Democratic ranks, Politico reported.
Although Durbin has been the party's whip for a decade, Schumer is reportedly thinking about promoting Sen. Patty Murray of Washington to the job if he takes over the Senate's Democratic caucus.
Politico also reported that if Schumer becomes minority leader, Murray could be interested in taking over Schumer's current job as head of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee.
Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, who is currently vice chairwoman of that committee, is also in line to move up to the top job at DPCC, Politico said.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.