United States House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer face resistance to their bids for Speaker and Senate Majority Leader when Congress convenes in January.
Interestingly, party supporters are leading the campaign against them, insisting they should not automatically emerge as Congress leaders just because Democrats have regained political power.
Over the weekend, thousands of people walked through Times Square in New York, bearing “No Schumer, No Jeffries” signs, in a demonstration called “March for Our Democracy.”
The lawmakers face pushback for two main reasons: a perceived lackluster stance on investigations into President Donald Trump’s family, administration officials, and policies, as well as support for Israel.
“We stand with Israel,” Jeffries and Schumer chanted, alongside outgoing Speaker Mike Johnson and Senator Joni Ernst, during a rally in November 2023 after the October 7 attacks.
Jeffries and Schumer have received financial donations from pro-Israel donor networks, individual earmarks, and political action bodies associated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, AIPAC.
But other Democratic adherents argue that to avoid polarising the party whose blue wave secured victories in the midterm elections, Hakeem and Schumer should lead, citing their years of legislative experience.
Hakeem, 56, who represents New York’s 8th Congressional District, assumed office in January 2013; Schumer, 75, has been a member of the Senate from New York since January 1999. Both are Brooklyn natives.
Although Jeffries is the favorite to lead the House and become the first Black Speaker, Democrats have been receiving protest calls, with a petition opposing his candidacy collecting over 1 million signatures.
On Sunday, the US Senator-elect from Kansas, Adam Hamilton, described Schumer as “a kind of polarizing figure” during his appearance on NBC News’s Meet the Press.
Hamilton said he wants “a leader who can lead from the center, who can bring Republicans and Democrats together,” and who can unite the various factions in the Democratic Party.
“It feels like it’s time for fresh and new ideas and somebody who can unite us instead of dividing us,” the United Methodist pastor added.
Hamilton made history as the first Democrat elected to the US Senate in Kansas in 94 years, defeating Republican incumbent Senator Roger Marshall.
Meanwhile, Jeffries has restated his backing for the impeachment of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. “I’m a hard yes on the Hegseth resolution,” he declared on ABC’s This Week.
The Secretary, he noted, has abused his power, undermined national security, and “engineered” the war in Iran, “which has skyrocketed prices on the American people and made the country less safe.”
Jeffries, Schumer face opposition to becoming US House Speaker, Senate Leader
