Charles Schumer – Donald Trump's "nose-crawler"

Although the US government has resumed operations after a 3-day shutdown thanks to a temporary budget package until February 8, if Mr. Charles Schumer does not reach an agreement with the Republicans in the negotiations on the DACA immigration management program, the US government will be shut down again. Since taking the position of Democratic leader in the US Senate, Mr. Charles Schumer has repeatedly blocked Donald Trump's policies, and this time will be no exception.

The “Most Interesting Man in Washington”

Charles Schumer – leader of the Democratic minority in the US Senate. Photo: AP.

When Donald Trump was elected President and began to fill senior positions in his administration, much attention was focused on the two figures considered to be the White House’s No. 1 and No. 2, Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and Chief Strategist Steve Bannon. But for those truly familiar with Washington politics, the most interesting figure was Charles Schumer, the leader of the Democratic Party in the US Senate.

Charles Schumer took over as Senate Democratic Leader in late 2016, following the retirement of his predecessor, Harry Reid. This was a time when the Democrats were dealing with some bad news: they had lost their majorities in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, and the White House was won by Donald Trump, not Hillary Clinton, after a tight race. That alone made Schumer’s position attractive: he would be the face of the Democratic Party in both Washington and nationally, and he would be the strategist leading the Democrats in the face of Republican control of both the White House and Capitol Hill.

Mr. Charles Schumer's position is further attracted by the side information such as the fact that he is quite close to President Donald Trump and may be willing to compromise with the Republicans, or that President Donald Trump publicly praised their relationship, saying that he "likes Mr. Schumer more than Senator Mitch McConnell, the leader of the Republican Party in the Senate, as well as Mr. Paul Ryan, the Speaker of the House, because both of them do not want Donald Trump to win the election.

Therefore, people are waiting to see how Mr. Charles Schumer will behave in his relationship with President Trump, with Mr. Mitch McConnell and Mr. Paul Ryan, and to see how he will lead the Democrats in regaining the majority of seats in Congress in the midterm elections that will take place at the end of 2018. "I am not afraid of Donald Trump. I am not afraid of the Republican Party." - Charles Schumer's commitment has truly made him the most notable figure in Washington.

Dedicated to the party and the people

Many people commented that Charles Schumer is a person who is “dedicated to the party and the people”. The comment seems to have a “slogan” color but is completely true to what Charles Schumer has shown throughout his political career.

Charles Schumer was born on November 23, 1950, in Brooklyn, New York, where his father owned a small business and his mother was a homemaker. He attended public schools and graduated from James Madison High School before going to Harvard University, and then Harvard Law School.

After graduating from Harvard Law School in 1974, Schumer was immediately elected to the New York City Council, launching his political career at the young age of 24. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1998. He began his first Senate term by vowing to visit all 62 New York boroughs each year—a promise he has kept to this day.

He is known as one of the most elected and most prolific officials in the United States. Countless New Yorkers from all walks of life have had the opportunity to talk and interact with him during his appearances at conferences, festivals, and public events. He is affectionately known by New Yorkers as a “tireless warrior,” ready to appear at hot spots to support the people.

Charles Schumer has frequently sought to use the powers of government to help people. He has called on the Food and Drug Administration to crack down on sunscreen manufacturers whose products don’t provide as much protection as advertised, and has called on the Federal Aviation Administration to impose more generous seating standards on commercial airlines.

For the Democratic Party, he has played a prominent role in three areas: leading the policies that the Democratic Party wants to pursue, having a remarkable fundraising ability for the party and being the most powerful communicator of the party's activities to the public. During the 2016 election, he raised up to $ 18.6 million through his campaigns, most of which he transferred to the Democratic Party Campaign Committee and other colleagues.

Charles Schumer has blocked many of President Donald Trump's policies. Photo: Getty.

Schumer is sometimes called the “Senator from Wall Street” because of his massive fundraising prowess. As Senate minority leader, Schumer led Democrats in blocking many of President Donald Trump’s agendas, including repealing ObamaCare and building a wall on the US-Mexico border. “Our job is to hold the president and our Republican colleagues to the highest level of accountability,” Charles Schumer once said – and to this day, he is still considered a fierce defender of Democratic views.

Budget war

The Mexican border wall – Schumer’s “bargaining tool” in the “budget war” with Donald Trump. Photo: Reuters.

Since taking over as Senate minority leader under President Donald Trump, Charles Schumer has blocked many of the president's major decisions.

When Donald Trump officially took over the White House in early 2017, Mr. Schumer led the Democratic opposition to most of Donald Trump's cabinet nominees, including Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao - wife of Senator Mitch McConnell, or called for Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign because of information about his relationship with the Russian Ambassador to the US. Most recently, he tried to block President Donald Trump's decision to abolish the DACA illegal immigrant protection program - the main cause of the "budget war" between the Republicans and Democrats that caused the US government to shut down for 3 days.

Republicans accused their Democratic opponents of seeking leverage on immigration reform, despite the government shutdown. However, Charles Schumer argued that Democrats had agreed to put Donald Trump’s wall on the floor of Congress in exchange for continued White House aid to illegal immigrants. The shutdown was due to President Donald Trump’s failure to seize the opportunity, not the Democrats.

The Democrats have made concessions by voting to pass a temporary budget package, keeping the government running until February 8, in exchange for the Republicans' commitment to bring the immigration issue to the Senate for discussion in early February. However, with Mr. Charles Schumer's fierce character in defending the Democrats' views so far, facing President Donald Trump's fierceness in controlling immigration, analysts predict that the battle of wits in Washington will be fierce, and no one knows whether the government shutdown will repeat itself on February 9 or not.

Thuy Ngoc