Defiant Schumer says he won’t stand down as Democrat mutiny simmers

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer says he won’t resign his post, despite pressure from some in his party after he voted to move forward with a Republican spending bill that avoided a government shutdown.

“Look, I’m not stepping down,” Schumer says in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press.” The New York senator says he knew voting for the bill backed by Republican President Donald Trump would spark “a lot of controversy.”

“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,” he says. “People disagree.”

Democrats last week were confronted with two painful options: allowing passage of a bill they believe gave Trump vast discretion on spending decisions or letting funding lapse. After Schumer said he’d vote to advance the spending measure, 10 Democrats supported breaking the party’s filibuster and allowing the bill to pass.

Schumer’s move allowing passage of a bill Democrats has sparked outrage from some party members and progressive activists who have protested at his office and called on him to resign his position. The uproar has prompted Schumer to postpone a tour promoting a new book he wrote on antisemitism.

On ABC’s “This Week,” Vermont Democratic Sen. Bernie Sanders criticizes Schumer and other members of Democratic Senate leadership. But he abruptly ends the interview when asked about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who wants to challenge Schumer in a primary, potentially being elected to the Senate.

“I don’t want to talk about inside-the-beltway stuff,” Sanders says.