Schumer Takes A Dive

He should take a tip from old boxing movies.

In old boxing movies, even the most broken-down stumblebum knows how to throw a fight. It’s called “taking a dive.” Before you lose, make it look like you’re trying to win. Throw a punch or two before you sprawl across the canvas and feign unconsciousness.

Maybe Chuck Schumer needs to watch more old boxing movies. By working to pass the Trump/GOP “continuing resolution,” he threw the bout of a lifetime. Why, he didn’t even pretend to fight.

Despite his tortured explanations, the most logical explanation for Schumer’s vote is simple: it was what Wall Street wanted. Trump’s recent actions destabilized the stock market, after all, and a government shutdown might have crushed its current “correction.” Democrats across the political spectrum may have condemned Schumer’s vote, but the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board was delighted.

Would voters have blamed Democrats for a shutdown, as Schumer has claimed? Nancy Pelosi, Hakeem Jeffries, and other mainstream Democrats don’t think so. Democrats offered their own stopgap bill and voters are aware that Trump has disrupted government operations.

Then there’s the delicate subject of Schumer as messenger. There are many reasons for the party’s recent losses, not the least of which is the party’s aging leadership. That’s why Nancy Pelosi yielded the House leadership to a younger (if less talented) member of Congress. When Joe Biden was forced to step down, only Schumer remained from the old guard.

I’m in no position to complain about someone’s age—and I wouldn’t. Schumer’s problem isn’t age per se. The problem is that he seems old, because he’s out of touch with today’s realities. His demeanor screams “old-school, deal-making politico.”

On this critical vote, Schumer was a leader who didn’t lead. On Wednesday, March 12, he boasted that “Republicans do not have the votes in the Senate to pass the House CR,” adding, “Our caucus is unified on a clean 30-day CR.”

His Democratic colleagues were, therefore, understandably “stunned” when he reversed himself the next day and announced he would ensure that the continuing resolution is passed.