Schumer can’t believe it. This is the last thing he expected.
And Chuck Schumer just got delivered news that’s made his blood boil.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has abruptly called off a series of book tour events this week, citing “security concerns,” as progressive activists seethe over his recent move to dodge a partial government shutdown.
The decision, confirmed by a source to the New York Post, comes as the 74-year-old New York Democrat had planned to promote his upcoming book, Antisemitism in America: A Warning, with stops in Baltimore, Washington, DC, Philadelphia, and New York City during the Senate’s recess.
Event webpages now carry a uniform message: “Senator Schumer’s book tour events during the week of March 17 are being postponed for security reasons. We will work to reschedule this event at a later date.” The cancellations follow a firestorm of criticism from the left flank of his party, furious over Schumer’s vote last week to support a Republican-led bill keeping the government funded through September.
Progressive activists had been gearing up to disrupt his appearances, with prominent voices like Emma Vigeland of Majority Report rallying their audiences to confront Schumer. In Baltimore, his first scheduled stop on Monday, groups including the climate-focused Sunrise Movement had organized protests.
“Chuck Schumer is afraid to face the people he betrayed last week. Another act of cowardice. We need new leadership,” the Sunrise Movement declared in a stinging rebuke.
The tension traces back to last week’s showdown over government funding. With President Trump pushing aggressive cuts to federal agencies, many Democrats saw the threat of a shutdown as a rare chance to force Republican concessions.
In the House, all but one Democrat rejected the GOP’s stopgap measure. In the Senate, where a filibuster demands 60 votes to proceed, Democrats had the numbers to halt the bill—until Schumer, joined by nine other Senate Democrats, voted to move it forward.
Drawing on his decades in Congress—nearly 20 years in the House and over 25 in the Senate—Schumer argued that Democrats weren’t poised to win a shutdown fight. He also warned of the fallout: “A shutdown would give Donald Trump the keys to the city, the state and the country.” Though he opposed the GOP bill’s substance, Schumer feared a partially shuttered government would hand Trump unchecked power to slash federal operations even further.
That pragmatic stance ignited outrage among left-wing groups like Indivisible, which demanded Senate Democrats strip Schumer of his leadership role and mount a primary challenge in 2028.
Change.org petition urging donors to abandon the party until Schumer steps down has already amassed over 24,000 signatures. Protesters even descended on his home last week, their chants echoing through the streets.
Speculation has swirled that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) might take him on in the next primary. Schumer brushed it off to The New York Times, saying, “That’s a long time away.”
Democratic lawmakers have openly criticized his shutdown strategy, though no Senate Democrat has yet publicly called for his ouster. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) voiced alarm on NBC’s Meet the Press Sunday, warning, “If we continue to observe norms, if we continue to engage in business as usual, this democracy could be gone. I don’t think we have a year to save American democracy.”
Still, he affirmed his support for Schumer’s leadership. Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Schumer’s deputy, also supported the move.
House Democratic leadership, however, has been less forgiving. In a striking exchange last Friday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY)—a fellow Brooklynite—dodged questions about Schumer’s future. “Next question,” Jeffries snapped when pressed on whether he had confidence in his Senate counterpart or thought he should be replaced.
The book tour cancellations aren’t just about progressive ire. Jewish activists had also planned a Tuesday protest on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, pressing Schumer to pass the Antisemitism Awareness Act—a measure he clashed over with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) last year.
Schumer’s book, framed as a “warning” about the perils of letting “the world’s oldest hatred” fester, draws on history to make its case. As the highest-ranking Jewish elected official in the U.S., the issue hits close to home.
For now, Schumer’s retreat from the public stage leaves the growing unrest within his party—and beyond—simmering, with no clear resolution in sight.
Stay tuned to The Federalist Wire.
