Rep. Hakeem Jeffries Tuesday mentioned he helps Sen. Chuck Schumer even after the Senate Democratic chief controversially allowed a Republican stopgap spending invoice to go.
The Home minority chief brusquely informed a reporter he favors Schumer remaining as Democratic chief throughout an unrelated press convention in Brooklyn centered on preventing Medicaid cuts.
“Yes,” Jeffries answered when requested if he helps his longtime fellow Brooklyn lawmaker. Requested to elaborate, Jeffries mentioned solely: “Yes, I do.”
The response amounted to a significant shift from Jeffries’ stance final week, when he refused to say if he had confidence in Schumer’s management.
The 2 males met face-to-face of their house borough on Sunday to hash out their variations over the spending invoice and the way Democrats can successfully resist President Trump’s second time period agenda.
“We had a good conversation about the path forward, particularly how it relates to our speaking with one voice,” Jeffries mentioned.
Home Democrats voted almost unanimously in opposition to the GOP spending invoice, however Republicans succeeded in lining up their very own help and passing it by way of the narrowly divided chamber.
That put Schumer in a tricky bind. He had to decide on between blocking the invoice within the Senate, the place most laws requires 60 votes, or permitting it to go.
He determined to allow the invoice to go, citing what he known as the higher hazard of a authorities shutdown, which may have given Trump much more freedom to slash spending and hearth federal employees.
Many Democrats, together with each progressives and moderates, have fiercely criticized Schumer for failing to take what they mentioned would have been a principled stance in opposition to Trump’s agenda.
