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Schumer had little time to prepare: Democrats failed to win a majority until the second round in Georgia in January. And the day Schumer found out he had gotten the job, the Capitol was overrun with pro-Trump rioters. His time to soak up the good news was limited to a few hours.
That timeline meant a crash course in leading the Senate alongside a Democratic White House and House. Schumer is put to the test overseeing a generally united minority during the Trump years, although maintaining unity as majority leader is always more difficult.
And with McConnell holding the Senate organizing resolution, the degree of difficulty for Schumer has become much higher.
“It’s unprecedented, really,” said Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Democrat # 3. “We had the perfect storm.”
“Sen. McConnell was once the leader of the minority. Senator Schumer was never the leader of the majority, ”added Senator Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), Member of the GOP leadership. “One arrives with a little more time to think about what exactly this job entails than the other.”
So far, Schumer has made it clear that he is not giving in to McConnell’s demand to include the protection of legislative obstruction as part of any power-sharing deal. During a private caucus call Thursday, Schumer told members he was optimistic he would come to an agreement with McConnell, according to a source on the call.
On Friday, he called McConnell’s proposal “unacceptable”. He also rejected McConnell’s request to postpone Trump’s trial to mid-February, then later that day reached a deal with the GOP leader to begin the trial the week of February 8.
These movements were seen within the caucus as a sign of strength.
“Chuck Schumer will continue to refuse to allow the minority to dictate the functioning of the majority,” said Senator Jeanne Shaheen (DN.H.).
Meanwhile, pressure from the left on Schumer to abandon the filibuster only increases as Republicans engage in major political struggles with the new Democratic majority.
Just Democracy, a coalition of more than 40 minority-led organizations, is launching ads in Times Square in New York City, calling on Schumer to eliminate filibuster, according to details first shared with POLITICO. The ad urges Schumer to “abolish filibuster” and quotes Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DN.Y.) describing her as “a valuable tool of segregationists.”
Separately, Fix Our Senate, a group created to target McConnell, is also running a full-page ad with other advocates in The New York Times this weekend, calling for the elimination of the filibuster. Senate Republicans say Schumer faces an early squeeze between Biden’s bipartisan bromides and his own party votes pushing him to crush Republicans as quickly as possible.
“What [Schumer] wants to do is have it hang over our heads like a sword of Damocles for some future event and I think it makes sense to resolve this issue early, ”said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a close ally of McConnell. “I also understand the political pressure that President Biden and Schumer exert on the progressives and seek to be awarded by the AOC.
But even if Schumer wanted to get rid of the filibuster, he would have to overcome objections from the moderates and perhaps Biden himself.
Schumer’s top three immediate priorities are to fill Biden’s cabinet, conduct the impeachment trial and pass a major coronavirus relief program. But Republicans have resisted each of them to varying degrees, despite Biden’s hopes of working with the GOP.
At some point, Democrats can get frustrated enough to get rid of the filibuster. But for now, the plan to fall back on a stimulus measure is budget reconciliation, which avoids the requirement of a supermajority but comes with certain limits.
“I think we work through committees until we can’t,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), a progressive senator about to take over from the Banking Committee. “We keep trying until it doesn’t work. And then we do the reconciliation.
Democrats say they have no illusions about McConnell. But they also hope his personal relationship with Biden will lead to more cooperation than under former President Barack Obama. McConnell has so far worked with Democrats to ensure Biden’s national security candidates are confirmed, although the pace is lagging behind most previous presidents.
“We have a feeling he has a good personal relationship with Biden that is going to be helpful,” said Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Who ignored McConnell’s attempt to influence Schumer in his early days as that leader of the majority. “Chuck is negotiating from a position of strength right now.”
The fact that McConnell has asked for a longer time for the trial as well as concessions on how to run the Senate smacks of some Democrats as McConnell still tries to be the majority leader, even though now is the time to Schumer. Just as Schumer adjusts to the majority lead, Democrats say it may take some time for McConnell to get off the wheel.
“I know it’s hard for him to settle into his new role, but you can’t be the majority leader if you are the minority leader,” said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn .).
Laura Barrón-López contributed to this report.
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