Senate Minority Chuck Schumer (D-NY) met with frustrated liberals on Monday — and it reportedly didn't go well.
Schumer has received immense backlash from Democrats in recent days for voting in favor of the recent GOP stopgap funding bill. The Senate on Friday passed a short-term funding bill to avoid a government shutdown, with some Democrats helping it over the finish line, breaking with their House counterparts.
Democrats have said the bill was crafted without their input, with Progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) saying it "codifies much of this chaos that Elon Musk is wreaking havoc on the federal government."
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Schumer has defended his vote, saying a government shutdown would be worse and play directly into Musk's hands as he tries to dismantle the federal government as part of his Department of Government Efficiency initiative.
On Monday night, Politico reported, citing five anonymous sources, that Schumer was in "damage-control mode," with he and his aides talking behind closed doors with left-leaning groups to try to "ease tensions after sparking a civil war."
"It isn’t going great," the report said.
Schumer met with leaders at the group Indivisible, which called for him to step down from his role as top Senate Democrat.
"Schumer’s team tried to persuade the New York leaders at Indivisible not to immediately sign onto a statewide letter that called for Schumer to quit his position as minority leader," the report said. Schumer spoke to the group on Sunday, and they called for him to step down the following day anyway.
"The goal was to get Sen. Schumer in front of Indivisible group leaders before they made any decisions on anything,” a person familiar with the meeting told Politico.
Another called the talks “tense and unproductive.”
Schumer confirmed to Politico he met with groups including Indivisible to "explain my position," adding: "Many disagree and I respect that, but I look forward to continuing to work together with them against the evils of the Trump administration."
