Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) faced ridicule this week after dismissing a New York Times/Siena College poll showing Americans largely blame Democrats for the government shutdown.
The incident occurred just before the shutdown officially began, after Senate Democrats rejected a continuing resolution passed by the House.
Schumer referred to the poll in a floor speech, saying, “Now I know the leader is going to show a poll that says that Democrats will be blamed for the shutdown. There are many more polls that show Republicans are blamed. The question in that poll is biased.”
He continued, “In the New York Times, but it’s biased. I don’t always believe the New York Times … You can be sure of that. Neither do you.” Republican senators erupted in laughter during his comments.
The shutdown stemmed from Democrats’ push to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits and provide taxpayer-funded healthcare for illegal immigrants.
Republicans and the White House opposed these measures, citing fiscal concerns and arguing the proposals would prioritize illegal immigrants over struggling Americans, per the Conservative Brief.
Vice President J.D. Vance criticized the Democrat plan, saying, “It was a $1.5 trillion spending package, basically saying the American people want to give massive amounts of money, hundreds of billions of dollars to illegal aliens for their health care, while Americans are struggling to pay their health care bills.”
The NYT/Siena poll, conducted before the October 1 deadline, showed only 27 percent of respondents supported Democrats shutting down the government if their demands were not met.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) blamed Democrats for the shutdown, saying, “This is [Senate Minority Leader] Chuck Schumer’s decision, is to hand … the keys to the kingdom to the president. He has put himself in that situation, and it’s completely unnecessary. The president takes no pleasure in this.”
Without the continuing resolution, federal agencies have begun contingency plans, delaying payments and reducing operations. Trump’s administration, led by Office of Management and Budget director Russ Vought, has already frozen billions in funding for projects such as New York City subway infrastructure.
Trump posted on Truth Social about a meeting with Vought, stating he would review which agencies and programs should face cuts. “I have a meeting today with Russ Vought … to determine which of the many Democrat Agencies, most of which are a political SCAM, he recommends to be cut, and whether or not those cuts will be temporary or permanent,” Trump wrote.
Johnson explained the challenges agencies face during the shutdown. He said the OMB is determining essential programs, personnel, and spending priorities.
“He takes no pleasure in this … because Russ has to sit down and decide, because he’s in charge of that office, which policies, personnel and which programs are essential, and which are not. That is not a fun task, and he is not enjoying that responsibility,” Johnson added.
