Tipsheet

Chuck Schumer Finally Endorsed Kamala Harris and What a Mess It Was

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  July 24, 2024 10:45 AM

On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) finally endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace President Joe Biden as the Democratic nominee for president in 2024. Biden withdrew on Sunday via a letter shared to his X account and endorsed Harris not long after.

Schumer's remarks were cringeworthy from the start, given that he mispronounced the name of the candidate he just endorsed for president. 

Recall how leading up to the 2020 election, the mainstream media was all in to declare it was racist to get Harris' name wrong. The Washington Post put out several articles on the subject. Does that make Schumer racist?

Regardless, his speech only got more cringeworthy from there. He had his own 'please clap' moment as he called for applause. He was more so met with laughter.

"Vice President Harris has done a truly impressive job securing the majority of delegates needed to win the Democratic Party's nomination to be our next president to the United States. The vast majority of my senators quickly and enthusiastically endorsed her," Schumer declared.

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He even claimed, "So, now that the process has played out, from the grassroots, bottom up, we are here today to throw our support behind Vice President Kamala Harris."

To laughter, Schumer then pointed out "I'm clapping. You don't have to," and offered "It's a happy day. What can I say?" Such a call for applause happened moments later as well. 

In all seriousness, what "process" is he talking about that played out? Biden's own fellow Democrats forced him out. Harris earned enough delegates on Monday night without having herself ever received a vote in any of the primaries.

Schumer also spoke to how he's supposedly "seen a surge of enthusiasm from every corner of our party uniting behind Vice President Harris, an enthusiasm felt in every corner of the country, and it's contagious among Democrats."

Given that former and potentially future President Donald Trump still leads Harris in the polls, especially among key demographics, such points from Schumer might not have much weight.

"Now, we all know that Vice President Harris has a tremendous record to run on, and now begins the next chapter in our quest to make sure Donald Trump does not become president," Schumer also laughably claimed. "Today, with one voice, we speak about the dangers he presents to working families, to our country, and to our democracy."

Those points are especially telling. Harris was a senator for the bright blue state of California before she became Biden's vice president. In 2019, she was ranked as the most liberal senator, as well as one of the least bipartisan ones. She has a particularly problematic record.

Further, this talk about "the dangers [Trump] presents... to our democracy" is concerning, given that Trump was nearly assassinated just over a week ago. 

"We will--we see very clearly how nervous the Republicans are about our new nominee," Schumer went on to say from there. While it would not be wise for Republicans to underestimate Harris, or any candidate, that doesn't mean they're "very clearly nervous."

Schumer's comments about Trump presenting "dangerous" to their talking points like "our democracy" were not only concerning when it comes to political rhetoric, but also hypocritical.

A reporter took issue with Schumer's phrasing about a "bottom-up process," but in taking the question, Schumer just ended up doubling down on his points, using a lot of words to say not very much.

"I know you said that this was a bottom-up process, but Kamala Harris is the vice president of the United States. There was no other competition. This is going to be selected by party delegates, insiders, essentially," a reporter pointed out, as he then asked, "What's your case to the American people and to the Democratic voters that voted for Joe Biden that this isn't a coronation?"

"The bottom line: it was a bottom-up process. People just rallied right to her side. The enthusiasm in this big, diverse, representative party was amazing. You could -- it was palpable. You could cut it with a knife," Schumer said as part of her non-answer, doubling down on this sense of supposed "enthusiasm."

Perhaps most telling of all was what Schumer didn't do, which was deny that Biden was forced out, and whether or not he himself played a role. 

"You had a number of conversations with the president over the last several weeks," another reporter pointed out. "You went up to Delaware. That was described as a bit of an emotional meeting of sorts. I'm wondering, did you ever personally ask him not to run for reelection?"

As part of another non-answer, Schumer offered, "Look, what I would say is that the president has done an amazing, amazing job as president, one of the best we have ever had. And he put his country first and made the right decision."

It's worth reminding that Schumer's spokesperson offered a non-denial in the days leading up to Biden actually withdrawing from the race. 

Speaking of Biden, Schumer also spoke from the Senate floor about the president, in a speech he previewed during his remarks, and one that his office titled, "Applauding President Biden’s Decision To Pass The Torch And Recognizing His Legacy And Love Of Country."

Schumer isn't merely a holdout on endorsing Harris, though. He still won't speak to whether or not embattled Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), should be receiving classified briefings. He instead tried to put that all on the Senate Ethics Committee. 

The senator, who is set to resign on August 20, was convicted last week on all federal charges. It took until that July 16 conviction for Schumer to call on him to resign.