Schumer Blinks (AOC Upset)

I think we all knew this was coming. As Ed pointed out a few hours ago, Schumer had already signaled he was caving by lunchtime today. So this afternoon he made it official in another speech.

“Republican rejection leads us to a decision, and it’s not really a decision it’s a Hobson’s choice,” Schumer said. He continued, “Either proceed with the bill before us or risk Donald Trump throwing America into the chaos of a shutdown. This is my view is no choice at all.

“While the CR bill is very bad, the potential for a shutdown has consequences for America that are much, much worse.”

Here’s a portion of his speech.

🚨 THERE IT IS: Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) caves after threatening a shutdown.

“While the bill is very bad, the potential for a shutdown has consequences for America that are much, much worse.”

“Let me be clear about one thing: nobody on my side of the aisle wants a… pic.twitter.com/CIY3tdSzvK

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) March 13, 2025

Schumer is really working hard to blame Republicans for everything that happened but this is really a disaster of Democrats’ own making. It was only yesterday that Senate Dems held a lunch meeting (which reportedly included some shouting) and came out of the room announcing they would not vote to move the House CR forward in the Senate but would instead play chicken with a government shutdown. Here’s what Schumer was saying about 24-hours ago.

“Our caucus is unified on a clean April 11 CR that will keep the government open and give Congress time to negotiate bipartisan legislation that can pass,” he said. “”I hope our Republican colleagues will join us to avoid a shutdown on Friday.”

So ask yourself: What has changed in the last 24-hours? The answer is nothing. The situation is exactly the same as it was yesterday. The looming shutdown Schumer says convinced him to choose the least bad option today was looming just the same yesterday. If Dems had never come out opposing this in the first place the walk back today wouldn’t be so painful.

Democrats somehow managed to be both Charlie Brown charging at the football and Lucy pulling it away. They set up their own public failure. And Schumer is clearly mad about it.

🚨DESPERATE CHUCK SCHUMER CALLS REPUBLICANS “BASTARDS”🚨

“It’s much, much better not to be in the middle of a shutdown, which would divert people from the number one issue we have against these bastards!”

“They’re ruining democracy!” pic.twitter.com/9i90rfOv9z

— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) March 14, 2025

Some Democrats get that this probably was the least bad option for the party.

Schumer is right. Dems are understandably spoiling for a fight but this was not it. The idea that there was leverage in a shutdown was magical thinking – it’d be a gift to DOGE, more people would be hurt and it would’ve ended with a worse deal.

Fight – but pick smart fights.

— Adam Jentleson (@AJentleson) March 13, 2025

Others not so much.

Republicans cut Democrats entirely out of their process for the CR, didn’t want any of our input, and would have been blamed by a majority of the American public for a government shutdown.

There was no reason to cave to them.
Chuck Schumer has to go.

— BrooklynDad_Defiant!☮️ (@mmpadellan) March 14, 2025

AOC is clearly in the not happy camp and is already out there suggesting that Democrats might change their minds yet again by tomorrow.

Tapper: Chuck Schumer just said that he’s going to vote for cloture.

AOC: I think that that would be a mistake. But we have we have time between now and tomorrow, and I hope that individuals that are considering that reconsider it, I genuinely do. I don’t think it’s what New… pic.twitter.com/LkeBoCqH2W

— Acyn (@Acyn) March 14, 2025

This is probably over no matter what AOC wants. As usual she’s a big talker when she knows her opinions won’t result in any action she might be held accountable for later. But stay tuned tomorrow to see if there’s more backlash to Sen. Schumer folding like a cheap suit. Here’s the full video of his speech.

Update: Another vote of no confidence in Schumer.

Now that Schumer and Senate Dems have abjectly decided to cave, when they scream about the cuts that Musk and Trump continue to undertake in violation of *their own CR,* it will only sound all the more hollow. Great job all around, guys.

— Greg Sargent (@GregTSargent) March 13, 2025

Chuck Schumer: Capitulator in Chief.

— Norman Ornstein (@NormOrnstein) March 13, 2025

Shots fired!

CALL CHUCK SCHUMER’S SENATE OFFICE AND TELL HIM TO RESIGN FOR HIS PATHETIC CAVING TO MAGA ROBBER BARONS AND FASCISTS

(202) 224-6542

— Secular Talk ([email protected]) (@KyleKulinski) March 13, 2025

Bluesky must be fun tonight…shall we peek?:

Schumer is a disgrace

— Jen Rubin (@jenrubin.bsky.social) March 13, 2025 at 5:05 PM

I am so fucking furious at Chuck Fucking Schumer

— Kevin M. Kruse (@kevinmkruse.bsky.social) March 13, 2025 at 4:20 PM

AOC should announce a primary against Schumer tonight.

— Will Stancil (@whstancil.bsky.social) March 13, 2025 at 3:14 PM

Schumer himself is getting a ratio for the ages: 147 likes and 2,800 responses.

A shutdown would give Donald Trump and Elon Musk carte blanche to destroy vital government services at a significantly faster rate than they can right now.

— Chuck Schumer (@schumer.senate.gov) March 13, 2025 at 5:06 PM

The howls of rage are so loud that I wonder if Chuck might be tempted to reverse course again.