OPINION:
New York’s senior senator, Charles E. Schumer, was not on the ballot on Nov. 5, but he is still a big loser — even more than usual.
It’s a long-standing joke in Washington that the most dangerous place to be is between Mr. Schumer and a microphone. Yet he’s been uncharacteristically silent on the tsunami of antisemitism that is sweeping America and his home state. Indeed, to his shame, Mr. Schumer has been working against his Jewish constituents. When he’s up for reelection in 2028, they should work against him.
If you saw Mr. Schumer’s Father’s Day post where he pretends to grill cheeseburgers, you know everything you need to know about this fraud. Not only does he not know that you don’t put cheese on raw burgers, but he also doesn’t seem to understand that cheeseburgers aren’t kosher.
Neither is he.
In a state with the largest Jewish population in the United States, the self-described “Shomer Yisrael,” or “guardian of the Jewish people,” has failed to confront antisemitism with any degree of seriousness. Last month, a 325-page report released by the House Education and Workforce Committee underscored the depth of Mr. Schumer’s unwillingness to tackle the Jew-hatred brewing at Columbia University.
As Jewish students were intimidated and attacked on the elite campus near Mr. Schumer’s home, the dossier reveals that the senator told Columbia University administrators that the school’s “political problems are really only among Republicans,” and that school officials should “keep their heads down” until the issue abates.
Mr. Schumer has taken his Jewish constituents for granted and did nothing as the campuses and streets of New York were overtaken by a grotesque ideology that threatened the very people he feigns to care about.
Last March, the senator poured fuel on the Jew-hating fire when, amid Israel fighting its war against genocidal terrorists, he denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the Senate floor and called for the Jewish state to hold new elections.
Perhaps sensing the political uncertainty brewing ahead, reports are surfacing that Mr. Schumer is privately considering moving on the antisemitism legislation as an amendment to the 2025 defense bill, a ploy that Republican legislators accuse Mr. Schumer of directing to conceal the weakening moral character of liberals likely to vote against a stand-alone antisemitism bill.
And a weak moral character is exactly what Mr. Schumer is about.
For politicians such as Mr. Schumer, an absence of core convictions allows inane policies and ideas to enter mainstream political spaces. It cements a weak-kneed proclivity to bend to the unsavory, antisemitic, even un-American characters in the Democratic Party.
Mr. Schumer’s supporters are quick to highlight his position against the flawed 2015 Iran nuclear deal as proof of his pro-Israel credentials. Yet the Obama-backed accord eventually secured enough Democratic support in the Senate almost 10 years ago, with the Senator operating under an opportunistic charade, refusing to whip the votes necessary to defeat the measure.
What’s more, Mr. Schumer’s dismissive attitude surrounding his party’s anti-Israel tilt was advanced this month as more than one-third of Senate Democrats voted in favor of blocking critical weapons sales to Israel.
Although the election may be over, Mr. Schumer’s preoccupation with pleasing progressives continues, confirming that his loyalties lie in retaining power rather than protecting his constituents.
Still, Mr. Schumer will never be progressive enough to gain acceptance among extreme abortion activists or antisemites, and his absence of moral courage while attempting to cave to leftist demands is stoking enough unease among moderates in the state that Republicans have a shot at making a meaningful play to take his Senate seat in the 2028 election.
President-elect Donald Trump came within 12 percentage points of defeating Vice President Kamala Harris in the Empire State, fueled by a 50% increase in support among Jewish New Yorkers compared with the 2020 election. Current data indicate that New York may be repositioning away from its deep blue roots.
This rightward drift signals a positive shift for Big Apple residents. It portends trouble for Mr. Schumer, who will be demoted from his post as majority leader when Republicans take over the Senate in January.
Mr. Schumer deserves to face a political reckoning for his shameless treatment of Jewish constituents and students.
New York is in a state of crisis, with migrant crime, economic turmoil and rising antisemitism increasingly met with reckless responses and pathetic indifference from liberals such as Mr. Schumer. The Democratic Party has abandoned us. It’s time New Yorkers abandon them and elect responsible Republican leaders who will redirect the state toward prosperity, safety and sanity.
• Irit Tratt is a writer and co-chair of the Trump 47 National Women’s Leadership Coalition.
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