Distrust dogs Democrats as they prepare for battles with Trump
The aftermath of last week’s bitter spending fight has forced Democrats to wonder whether trust levels between the two chambers can be rebuilt ahead of high-stakes battles with President Trump in the coming months.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) stirred a firestorm of intraparty fury on Friday when he helped Republicans advance a partisan spending bill that House Democrats had opposed almost to the person.
In doing so, Schumer surrendered the Democrats’ most potent leveraging tool, the filibuster, exasperating scores of Democrats already under fire from liberals who say they’re fighting too feebly against Trump’s early blitz of executive orders, federal firings and unilateral spending cuts.
Schumer has vehemently defended his decision, saying a shutdown would have been worse than adopting the continuing resolution (CR) written by the GOP to keep the government operating through September. But the debate has embittered many House Democrats, who say they’ve lost trust in Schumer to go to the mats against Trump’s agenda.
“Nobody doubts that the government shutdown Republicans were barreling towards would have been bad,” one House Democratic aide said Tuesday. “But to throw in the towel and give them votes on a partisan CR that empowers Trump only broadcast a dangerous message to the American people: Democrats won’t fight for you or hold the line for our democracy.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), who had led the pressure campaign on Schumer to oppose the GOP spending bill, said Tuesday he spoke with the Senate minority leader over the weekend and he’s ready to turn to the page for the sake of party unity.
Jeffries endorsed Schumer’s position as Senate leader, emphasizing that Democrats in both chambers are in lockstep when it comes to the........
© The Hill
