- Progressives, led by Rep. Ro Khanna, publicly demand Schumer be replaced, accusing him of betraying party principles by backing a GOP-linked funding deal.
- Eight Senate Democrats broke ranks to pass the stopgap, ending the 40-day shutdown but deepening intra-party anger over healthcare and leadership direction.
WASHINGTON – In a blistering public rebuke that underscores deepening rifts within the Democratic Party, California Rep. Ro Khanna declared Sunday night that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer “should be replaced” after a faction of his own caucus defied him to help end a grueling 40-day government shutdown.
The dramatic turn came as eight Senate Democrats broke ranks and voted for a Republican-led funding bill, supplying the crucial votes needed to avert an even deeper crisis just days before the holidays.
The move, which Khanna and fellow progressive Rep. Mark Pocan decried as a betrayal of core party principles, highlights the mounting frustration among the left wing of the party with Schumer’s leadership style – one they see as too accommodating to GOP demands at the expense of pressing issues like healthcare affordability.
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Khanna, the Silicon Valley congressman known for his vocal advocacy on tech ethics and economic populism, didn’t mince words in a late-night post on X.
“Senator Schumer is no longer effective and should be replaced,” he wrote. “If you can’t lead the fight to stop healthcare premiums from skyrocketing for Americans, what will you fight for?”
The timing couldn’t have been more pointed.
Schumer had spent weeks rallying his caucus against the House-passed funding measure, blocking it a staggering 14 times in the Senate as he lobbied for extensions to Obamacare subsidies – a key Democratic priority aimed at curbing rising health insurance costs for millions of middle-class families.
But with the shutdown dragging into its sixth week, federal workers furloughed and essential services strained, the pressure proved too much for some.
Those eight holdouts – whose identities weren’t immediately detailed in initial reports – tipped the scales in favor of the bipartisan deal, allowing the government to grind back to life.
It’s a tentative plan at best, critics like Khanna argue, one that sidesteps the deeper structural fixes needed for the Affordable Care Act and leaves vulnerable Americans exposed to premium hikes that could average 10-15% next year, according to recent estimates from healthcare watchdogs.
Democratic Infighting Intensifies Amid Shutdown
This isn’t Khanna’s first swing at Schumer. The California Democrat has long positioned himself as a bridge between the party’s progressive insurgents and its establishment core, but he’s grown increasingly outspoken about what he calls the “old guard’s” reluctance to take bold stands.
Just months ago, he lambasted Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries for being out of touch with the “American people,” urging a generational shift to better address inequality and corporate overreach.
Khanna’s critique echoes a broader sentiment bubbling up from the Squad and other young guns in Congress, who view the New York senator’s pragmatic deal-making as a relic of a bygone era – one that’s cost Democrats momentum on everything from climate action to student debt relief.
Pocan, the Wisconsin progressive and co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, piled on with his own scorched-earth assessment, framing Schumer’s maneuvers as a pattern of self-sabotage.
In an X post that quickly racked up thousands of likes and retweets, he wrote: “Don’t endorse or say who you voted for in NYC despite there being a Dem candidate. Get Dem Senators to negotiate a terrible ‘deal’ that does nothing real about healthcare.
Screw over a national political party. Profile of scourge? Next.”
The Wisconsin lawmaker’s reference to New York City alludes to Schumer’s recent silence on a high-profile local race, where his neutrality irked party loyalists amid a tight contest between a Democratic incumbent and challengers.
Taken together, these episodes paint a picture of a leader under siege from his own side, accused of prioritizing short-term wins over long-term vision.
Why this Shutdown Hits Different
For context, government shutdowns aren’t new in the hyper-partisan gridlock of Washington, but this one – triggered by a standoff over spending cuts and border security – hit particularly hard.
Furloughs affected over 2 million federal employees, national parks shuttered, and food safety inspections slowed to a crawl. Democrats, still smarting from midterm losses, saw it as a chance to hammer Republicans on fiscal irresponsibility, only for internal divisions to blunt the message.
Schumer’s office pushed back swiftly, with a spokesperson emphasizing the leader’s tireless work to protect healthcare gains amid the chaos. “Leader Schumer fought tooth and nail for American families facing skyrocketing premiums,” the statement read, crediting him with securing concessions in the final deal.
But such defenses may do little to quiet the chorus of dissent, especially as Democrats eye a potential 2026 rebound and the ever-looming shadow of presidential politics.
What happens next for Schumer remains an open question. At 75, the Brooklyn native has been a Senate fixture since 1999, rising through the ranks on a reputation for horse-trading and coalition-building.
Yet in an era defined by figures like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, his brand of institutionalism feels increasingly vulnerable. Khanna’s call for replacement isn’t just rhetoric; it’s a signal that progressives are done waiting for permission to reshape the party.
As Congress reconvenes this week, all eyes will be on whether this fracture widens or heals.
For everyday Americans, the real stakes couldn’t be clearer: with healthcare costs biting deeper into paychecks and federal programs sputtering back online, the infighting risks alienating voters who just want results.
If Khanna and his allies have their way, Schumer’s tenure could mark the end of an era – and the dawn of a more combative Democratic future.
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