Senate Democrats will not let Trump put a 'right-winger' on the Supreme
Court, Schumer vows
[November 06, 2026]
By MARY CLARE JALONICK
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer is vowing that
Democrats will not allow President Donald Trump to put “a right-winger”
on the Supreme Court once they take power, raising the possibility that
his party could block a presidential nominee if there is a vacancy in
the next two years.
In an interview with The Associated Press on Thursday, Schumer would not
say if he would hold a Supreme Court vacancy open until after the next
presidential election, as former Senate Republican Leader Mitch
McConnell did in 2016. But he said that Democrats are “not going to
allow any crappy nominees” to be confirmed to the Supreme Court — or to
the lower courts or Trump’s Cabinet, either.
“The bottom line is we’re not going to allow a right-winger on the
court,” Schumer said.
Schumer’s pledge came two days after Democrats won a decisive Senate
majority in the midterm elections — a feat few predicted a year ago,
when Schumer was facing intense criticism from progressives within his
party and Senate Republicans were betting that a favorable map and
backing from Trump would help them keep power.
While there is still frustration with Schumer in some corners of the
party, the New Yorker is expected to easily be reelected as leader by
his caucus after leading them to wins in Republican-leaning states
across the country. Democrats could have as many as 56 seats in the
Senate if they win Mississippi and Alaska, which still have not been
called — “a durable majority,” Schumer predicts, that has been 20 years
in the making as he has been directly or indirectly in charge of his
party’s Senate campaign operation.
With so many seats, Schumer is betting that “it’s not just a flip of the
Senate once.” And the party will have the power not only to reject any
of Trump’s nominees, forcing him to seek more moderate choices, but also
to halt the Iran war and alter policies that they have been unable to
counter in the minority.
Navigating divided government, Schumer says focus will be on costs
Schumer says the party’s agenda will center around lowering prices,
along with five issues that they have focused on in the minority —
healthcare, housing, Trump’s tariffs, childcare and lowering energy
bills. He has said Democrats will try to ban federal elected officials
from stock trades, and limit consumer costs from data center expansion.
Democrats also want to investigate Immigration and Customs Enforcement
raids across the country and scrutinize the Trump administration, which
he says is the “most corrupted administration by far in American
history.”
But Schumer would not get into specifics, or how he plans to get around
Trump — who posted a picture of a red hat with the word “veto” in large
letters on election night.
Beyond Trump, Schumer will also have to navigate his own caucus,
including progressives who have criticized him and incoming freshman who
won red states and would not commit to supporting him for leader during
their campaigns. And to pass any legislation, he will still have to win
Republican support as well.
He predicts that Republicans will suffer more losses “and keep following
Trump over the cliff” if they don't work with Democrats in a bipartisan
way.
But that will not be easy. Schumer would not say if he would try and
eliminate the filibuster, which he tried and failed to do when he was
majority leader during President Joe Biden’s term, to allow Democrats to
pass legislation with a simple majority instead of 60 votes.
“The focus has got to be on getting things done,” he says. “That’s all I
am saying.”
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Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks at the Center for American
Progress (CAP) post election forum, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, in
Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Asked if he would support a third Trump impeachment after Trump was
impeached and acquitted twice during his first term, Schumer
responds that he would support an impeachment of Defense Secretary
Pete Hegseth, an effort that House lawmakers have already launched.
And Trump? “That’s up to the House,” Schumer said.
Election wins two decades in the making
Schumer first led his party’s campaign arm in the 2006 cycle and has
had a hand in every election since then, with mixed results.
He attributes this year's wins to good candidates and a focus on
local issues in Republican states — the effect of Trump’s tariffs on
farms in Iowa, where Democrat Josh Turek won, Trump’s war with
Canada in Maine, where Democrat Troy Jackson beat Republican Sen.
Susan Collins, and data centers in Ohio, where former Sen. Sherrod
Brown won after losing his seat two years ago to Republican Sen.
Bernie Moreno.
Still, the party's focus on lowering costs was “a message that
resonated everywhere,” he says. “That’s a big difference than in the
past.”
The Democrats who won were not all his recruits — in Michigan,
Democrat Abdul El-Sayed represents the progressive wing of the party
and beat Schumer’s original choice for the seat, Haley Stevens, in
the primary. But Schumer poured $67 million into that race to help
El-Sayed and the two “talk regularly,” he said.
Schumer's future is unclear
Even with his winning record this year, it is still unclear how long
he will stay in power — and how long the party will support him as
some call for a new generation of leadership. He is up for
reelection in 2028, and he won’t say if he’ll run again for a sixth
term.
“I’m focused on 2027,” said Schumer, who became the party's Senate
leader in 2015.
Senators in his caucus are sticking by him, but many are also
agitating for change as they enter a new era of power.
Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a potential contender for the 2028
presidential nomination who has not committed to supporting Schumer,
said in an interview with the AP on Wednesday that Democrats need to
have an “open and honest discussion” about the next leader.
Vermont Sen. Peter Welch said in a separate interview that Schumer
“has to adjust and open things up and take into account the
criticism of our efforts.”
Still, Welch said, there’s no indication of a leadership challenge.
“Schumer did an incredible job on this campaign,” he said.
___
Associated Press writers Joey Cappelletti and Lisa Mascaro
contributed to this report.
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