Schumer rejects calls to step down as Senate Minority Leader amid Dem backlash over funding bill

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has made it clear that he will not step aside as the top Democrat in the chamber, despite pushback from some House Democrats and liberal activists who opposed his decision to support a Republican funding bill.

"Look, I’m not stepping down,” Schumer (D-NY) said in a recorded interview that aired Sunday on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.”

Schumer acknowledged that his vote to prevent a government shutdown was controversial but defended his decision. He argued that while the GOP-backed six-month funding bill was “certainly bad,” allowing a shutdown to happen “would be 15 or 20 times worse.”

“Under a shutdown, the executive branch has sole power to determine what is ‘essential.’ And they can determine without any court supervision. The courts have ruled it’s solely up to the executive what to shut down,” Schumer said, warning that the Trump administration “would eviscerate the federal government.”

"On Day 2, they could say, ‘Oh, SNAP? Feeding hungry children? Not essential.’ On Day 4, ‘Mass transit? All transit? Aid to the states? Not essential. We’re cutting it.’ On Day 6, ‘Medicaid? We’ll cut that by 20 percent, 30 percent, 50 percent, 80 percent. We’ll go after Social Security. We’ll go after the veterans.’ Their goal is to just eviscerate the federal government so they can give more taxes, and their tax cuts ... to their billionaire class over there,” Schumer added.

Schumer said his decision was a necessary leadership move, even if it upset some within his party.

"Sometimes when you’re a leader, you have to do things to avoid a real danger that might come down the curve. And I did it out of pure conviction as to what a leader should do and what the right thing for America and my party was. People disagree.”

While some Democrats have questioned the future of party leadership, no Democratic senators have directly called on Schumer to step down from the role he has held for over eight years. However, Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) suggested at a recent town hall that leadership discussions could happen in the future.

“We’re going to have future conversations about all the Democratic leadership,” Bennet told a constituent.

Schumer also dismissed any parallels between his situation and President Joe Biden’s refusal to step down as the 2024 Democratic nominee.

“No, absolutely not. I did this out of conviction. And, look, in my caucus, we have a disagreement as to, you know, some people voted one way, some people voted the other. But we’ve 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,” Schumer said.

NBC News has reported that some Democrats are hoping progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) will challenge Schumer in the 2028 primary if he decides to seek re-election.