Schumer Rolls Out New Anti-Trump Message — Tells Kristen Welker He’ll Make Trump ‘Quickest Lame Duck In Modern History’

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) told NBC News anchor Kristen Welker he plans to make President Donald Trump “the quickest lame duck in recent history” in response to critics.

The Senate Democratic leader has faced a blizzard of criticism from his party after he helped pass a continuing resolution in order to avoid a government shutdown.

Schumer sat for an interview on Sunday morning’s edition of NBC’s Meet the Press, and appeared to be testing out a new slogan in response to critics who say he hasn’t done enough to fight Trump:

KRISTEN WELKER: To that point – yeah. To that point, I mean, some Democrats are saying they want leadership to show more fight in this moment. They think that’s what’s required. You were, of course, instrumental in urging President Biden to drop out of the 2024 race when he himself wasn’t convinced. I’ve had conversations with Democrats, Leader Schumer, who say this moment feels very similar. Are you making the same mistake that President Biden did?

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER: No, absolutely not. I did this out of conviction. And, look, in my caucus, we have a disagreement as to, you know, some people voted one way, some people voted the other. But we’ve all agreed to respect each other because each side saw why the other side felt so strongly about it. And our caucus is united in fighting Donald Trump every step of the way. Our goal, our plan, which we’re united on, is to make Donald Trump the quickest lame duck in modern history by showing how bad his policies are. He represents the oligarchs, as I said. He’s hurting average people in every way. And we are – through oversight hearings, we’re exposing what he’s doing, through the courts, which I mentioned, we’ve had some real success in, through legislation, and through organizing in all the districts throughout the country so that I believe, that when — because the Republicans are already nervous. You know, a lot of them said, “Don’t hold town hall meetings.” I believe by 2026 the Republicans in the House and Senate will feel like they’re rats on a sinking ship because we have so gone after Trump and all the horrible things he’s doing. And they will know it, see it, hate it, and act on it.

KRISTEN WELKER: Let me ask you about something Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Tuesday about your decision. She said, quote, “I myself don’t give away anything for nothing. And I think that’s what happened the other day.” Do you acknowledge that Democrats didn’t get anything in this fight, Leader Schumer?

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER: Well, what we got, at the end of the day, is avoiding the horror of a shutdown. There was no leverage point that we could’ve — we could’ve asked for things, they just would’ve said no. And because they control — let’s not forget, they control the House and Senate. They could force a vote, yes or no on the CR, without any additions. Patty Murray tried very hard to get them to add things and they said no. And, because of the rules of the Senate, they could force a vote, yes or no. It was a difficult vote. We talked about it in caucus a lot. And I voted because I thought, you know when you — I say to people, “When you’re on that political mountain, the higher up you climb, the more fiercely the winds blow.” And the only way you stop being blown off the mountain is your internal gyroscope. My internal gyroscope said, “Regardless, regardless of the fact that some people would not like it, which I knew, that I had to do the right thing for the country and for our party.”

KRISTEN WELKER: Just very quickly, Leader Schumer, because I want to get to your book, I want to play a moment of you —

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER: Yes. Yes, I’d like that.

KRISTEN WELKER: – a protest from last month, other Democrats protesting Elon Musk’s DOGE cuts. Take a look.

[VIDEO CLIP]

KRISTEN WELKER: Leader Schumer, what do you say to members of your own party who feel like that type of resistance is not meeting the enormity of this moment, this political fight that’s required?

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER: Well, I said, you know, that was one day and one line. And – but we are fighting in every way, in the courts, in oversight, in legislation, in organizing. And we’re united. Hakeem and I are united. Our caucuses are united in moving forward on that way. And I think, if we fight, fight, fight, fight, as I said, we can make Donald Trump the quickest lame duck in recent history. His Republican colleagues will want to abandon him, and we’ll do very, very well in the 2026 election.

Watch above via NBC’s Meet the Press.