By Jonah Marshall, Staff Writer
Following the longest Government shutdown, lasting over 40 days, comes the American peoples’ questioning of Chuck Schumer’s career.
Senate Minority leader, Chuck Schumer, detested the new government shutdown bill proposed by Congress over the weekend.
Schumer gave a speech on the Senate floor in which he stated, “Democrats are united as the party of lower healthcare costs and improving our healthcare system. We will not give up this fight.”
Schumer referred to Democrats opposing voting on a bill that does not include an extension of COVID-19 Obamacare subsidies. Democrats were, in fact, going to give up that fight. As the leader of a caucus, a great responsibility lies in ensuring party votes are in unison. Chuck Schumer did not fulfill such responsibility. Eight Senate Democrats voted in-favor of the Senate bill. (Important note: All the Democrats who voted for the bill are not up for re-election or are retiring at the end of 2026.)
When a leader ends up losing enough votes to sway the outcome in the other party’s favor, that is a failure of leadership and control. The logical solution for a failure in leadership is to choose a new leader. In 2026, Democrats in the Senate should not vote for Chuck Schumer to be the leader of their party. It is also important to remember that this is not the first time Schumer has made errors during a shutdown battle. In March of 2025, Schumer voted in agreement of abstaining from a government shutdown, a move that was seen as unpopular among Democrats because it gave the improperly formed Department of Government Efficiency the ability to handle funding and fire federal workers at random.
What polls are saying
What Chuck Schumer and other Democrats who voted in favor of the bill fail to realize is that Democrats were winning the shutdown battle. Polls showed that the majority of Americans blamed the shutdown on Republicans and Trump.
A YouGov poll found that 35 percent of people blamed Republicans, while 32 percent blamed Democrats, and 28 percent blamed both. According to CNN, Trump has a job approval rating of 37 percent.
Democrats have also seen greater popularity during the 2025 election cycle. In New Jersey, New York, and Virginia, polls showed that the primary reason for turnout was the economy and the shutdown. Increased prices – partly due to Trump’s tariffs – and House Speaker Mike Johnson’s nearly two-month recess for the House, were reasons for the better-than-expected outcomes in the Nov. 4 Election Day results.
Chuck Schumer may lose his seat in the Senate
Schumer, who will be 78 if re-elected to the Senate in 2028, may be facing a 2028 primary challenge with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), a representative who represents Queens in the House. AOC has had notable popularity among progressives and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. AOC has also been on a tour with Sanders called the “stop oligarchy tour.” Current polls show AOC beating Schumer in a New York Senate primary.
It is unreasonable to identify opening the Government with no healthcare provisions or maintaining the government shutdown as positives. Ultimately, Chuck Schumer presented himself as being out of touch with as a leader through his words and vote.
With this in mind, it is reasonable for Chuck Schumer to worry about his future as a leader and Senator.
