OPINION:
In a way, it is poetic justice. The newly elected hard-left Democrats whom Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer of New York nurtured and fed now want his blood.
Several of the Democrats elected this year to the Senate, such as Troy Jackson of Maine, Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan, Adam Hamilton of Kansas and James Talarico of Texas, have announced that they will not support Mr. Schumer for majority leader when the new Congress convenes next year.
Veteran Democrats — such as Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Christopher Murphy of Connecticut and Tina Smith of Minnesota — have voiced frustration with Mr. Schumer’s candidate recruitment and leadership in legislative battles.
People were interested in these podcasts
Once the militants won their primaries, Mr. Schumer did everything he could to support them, including providing significant funding through his Senate Majority PAC.
Mr. Schumer’s PAC gave $30 million to Mr. El-Sayed, despite the Michigander’s hatred of Israel. Mr. El-Sayed will not even say whether he believes Israel has a right to exist, while the Palestinian cause is dear to his heart. That did not seem to present a problem for Mr. Schumer, who is Jewish.
When a Muslim terrorist attacked a synagogue that housed a kindergarten, preschool and daycare in West Bloomfield, Michigan, on March 12, while condemning the attack, Mr. El-Sayed said, “Hurt people hurt people.” This would seem to rationalize the attack on children by a man whose brother Ibrahim, identified by Israel as a Hezbollah commander, was killed in Lebanon.
An old saying goes that a revolution always eats its children. During the French Revolution, moderates in the National Assembly helped the Jacobins come to power. During the Reign of Terror, the Jacobins deposed them and sent them to the guillotine. During the Bolshevik Revolution, the Bolsheviks purged the more moderate Mensheviks.
Now, the blade is about to descend on Mr. Schumer.
Though a liberal, Mr. Schumer is not liberal enough for members of the Democratic Senate class of 2026. They want a minority leader in their own image — not one who is merely skeptical of Israeli policies, but one who is rabidly anti-Israel; not one who seeks to reform the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, but one who wishes to “rip it apart,” in the words of Sen.-elect Peggy Flanagan of Minnesota.
The new Democrats would like a leader who is committed to radical proposals, such as expanding the Supreme Court and granting statehood to the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
Even if Mr. Schumer somehow survives the purge, he will be constantly looking over his shoulder to see how close the wolves are and what he needs to do to appease them next.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.