Charles E. Schumer
Senator for New York · Democratic · United States
“There has already been some reporting from anonymous sources that Trump was personally involved in pushing these campaign ads on the taxpayers' dime. Let's be clear, these ads were anything but public service announcements. They were pure propaganda.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“When Trump meets with various AI industry leaders at the White House today, he ought to stop resisting the growing consensus that we need real guardrails to mitigate AI's risk.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Instead of trying to score cheap political points with hollow proposals, Senate Republicans need to work with us to take meaningful action that will actually contain these existential risks. They are not doing that, and the American people are in real danger because of their failure to act. Stock Trading Mr.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“President, on Trump propaganda, Donald Trump continues to cram his taxpayer-funded propaganda down the throats of the American people. In less than a single week, Trump has aired three campaign ads, costing at least $1.5 million, all paid for by--guess who--the American taxpayer.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“I can sum up the shortcomings of the Republican data center bill with one word: optional. The bill is optional. America, do you hear that? Here, we need some real action on data centers. And what does the Republican Senator from Ohio come up with? Something that is optional. It is up to the companies to decide.”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
“Mr. President, well, Donald Trump is asleep at the wheel when it comes to reining in unchecked AI. Right after news came out over the weekend about rogue AI agents infiltrating government websites in the United States, Australia, and at the U.N., do you know what Trump told FOX News?”
Senate29 September 2026Source ↗
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“Mr. President, first, I want to thank Senators Padilla and Reed for holding the floor on such a vital issue to our country, our democracy, and who we are as a people. I thank Senators Klobuchar and Bennet for participating as well and all the others who did as well. Well, we know that free and fair elections are the very wellspring of American democracy. When you ask people around the world ``What is great about America?'' this is one of the first things they say: ``They have elections, real elections, free elections.'' But unfortunately--deeply unfortunately--no administration has come closer to destroying that wellspring than the Trump administration. Donald Trump and Republicans are putting our elections in a vice grip-- Executive orders from the President on one end and dangerous legislation from Congress on the other.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“So today they have to choose: Stick with Trump, or stand with your States and the people of America. I thank my colleague and yield to the Senator from Oregon, the ranking member of Finance, who has done such a great job on this issue.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“If the Senate passes this bill, Speaker Johnson and House Republicans should immediately drop their opposition or else they will be complicit in pushing America into a recession. One thing is clear, Donald Trump's tariffs have been a total failure. Instead of isolating China, Donald Trump's tariffs are isolating us. Instead of spurring American manufacturing, Trump's tariffs are raising costs and driving us into a recession. There is no strategy with Trump's tariffs, only chaos. One day, Donald Trump says yes to tariffs; the next day, no to tariffs; one day, tariffs on this country; the next day, tariffs on that country. Even Donald Trump's own policy advisers are struggling to explain his flip- flopping.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. President, later this afternoon, Senators Wyden, Kaine, and I will force a vote here in the Senate to put an end to Donald Trump's stupid and reckless trade war. I thank Senators Wyden and Kaine for their leadership on this issue. We will have now more than 3 hours of debate on it, and that begins now. Our resolution presents Republicans with a choice: stand with Donald Trump or stand with American families hurt by his trade war. The dismal GDP numbers today should be a wake-up call to Republican Senators now more than ever. Four Republicans joined us last time to pass a resolution blocking tariffs on Canada because they knew how bad those tariffs were for people back home. Many more Republicans should join us today as the disastrous economic consequences of Trump's reckless trade war gets worse every single day.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“Donald Trump is deporting American citizens with no due process, and the American people don't like it. One of the traits of a dictator is someone hostile to all forms of accountability, to all forms of criticism. That is Donald Trump to a tee. He is scared of debate. He is scared of opposition. He can't stand the idea of others disagreeing with him. So, instead, he tries to crush anything he views as opposition. That is not strength; that is a sign of deep, deep, deep insecurity. The more Donald Trump tries to take America down this ominous road, the more he will face resistance. Democrats will oppose his agenda. The courts will oppose his attacks. Most of all, the American people will resist his hostile takeover of our democracy. I yield the floor. Recognition of the Majority Leader”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“Donald Trump is everything the Founding Fathers worried about when they wrote the Constitution. They feared a man who would see the rule of law as a nuisance, who would consider the truth as an inconvenience, and who would regard his fellow citizens as little more than subjects. Either kiss the ring, bow before the throne, or watch your back--that is the ethos of Donald J. Trump. Republicans howled at the Moon for years about weaponizing government, but no President in American history has weaponized the government like Donald Trump has in 100 days. The Department of Justice has become his personal henchman. He is assaulting the freedom of the press. He is assaulting our education system and institutions of higher learning. His deportation force is expelling American citizens with no due process. Let me repeat that.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“It is one big ``f'' word: ``failure.'' While our economy sinks in real time, while consumers get saddled with Donald Trump's tariffs, Republicans are complicit. They are coconspirators. They are aiding and abetting Donald Trump as he cuts taxes for billionaires. They are aiding and abetting Donald Trump as he wants to obliterate Medicaid. They are aiding and abetting Donald Trump as he wants to add $52 trillion to the national debt. They want to help the richest of the rich while telling the working people to get lost. The Republican agenda boils down to five dismal words: ``Billionaires win; American families lose.'' This is a recipe for failure if there ever has been one. Finally, as Donald Trump destroys our economy, the American people cannot and will not stand by as he also tries to destroy our democracy.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“Rental housing is up. The price of a new car is up. Household appliances are up. Big retailers are warning that Donald Trump's trade war will make the problem far, far worse. Foreign policy? Total failure. Putin is emboldened. China is not coming to the table. Our allies are all losing trust. He is ready to break up the European alliance over Ukraine. DOGE? Total failure. Elon Musk talked a big game on cutting waste and reducing fraud, but DOGE is attacking Social Security, attacking veterans' care, attacking cancer research. That is not cutting waste, Mr. Musk. That doesn't make the government more efficient. That puts a dagger to the programs that America needs and which make our country strong. The list goes on. Rooting out corruption? Failure. Transparency? Failure. The rule of law? Failure. Economic optimism? Failure.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“Our Republican colleagues have an opportunity to stop Donald Trump. Our resolution presents Republicans with a choice: Stand with Donald Trump or stand with American families. The GDP number today should be a wake-up call to Republican Senators now more than ever. Four voted with us the last time on tariffs about Canada. Many more should vote with us this time given the new numbers and given that this resolution covers all of the countries that Donald Trump has so failed on with tariffs. Senate Republicans know deep down that Donald Trump's tariff policies are awful for their States, so they have to choose today: Stick with Trump or stand with your States. But the failures don't stop there, just at tariffs. What about his promise to bring down costs? Again, failure--failure to bring down costs. Grocery prices are up. Housing is up.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“As he is doing this, his policy advisers have different explanations for what he is doing and why he is doing it. Businesses pay the price for Donald Trump's failed policies. When businesses don't know what the President will do next, they can't plan for the future. They are not going to hire workers. I have talked to business leaders--small businesses, medium-sized businesses, and big businesses--in New York, and I am sure this is true around the country. They are holding off on any new spending because they don't know what Donald Trump will do next. His chaos is just totally impeding our economy. We are seeing it happen in real time. Because the tariff policy has been such a mess, such a failure, today, later today, Senators Wyden, Kaine, and I will force a vote here in the Senate to stop Donald Trump's trade wars.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“Donald Trump's first 100 days have been defined by one big ``f'' word: ``failure.'' Donald Trump's first 100 days have been defined by the ``f'' word: ``failure''--failure on the economy, failure to lower costs, failure on foreign policy, failure on democracy, failure everywhere you look. Donald Trump must admit his failure and reverse course and immediately fire his economic team. Otherwise, we will see more of the same: failure and chaos and total incompetence. His tariff strategy?--total failure. China is not coming to the table. Manufacturing is not racing back to our shores. There is no strategy--only chaos. Every day, he changes his mind. One day, he says yes to tariffs; the next day, no. One day, this country is on the list; the next day, that country is on the list. No tariffs. Double the tariffs. On and on and on.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.”
Senate30 April 2025Source ↗
“As America marks the first 100 days of the worst President of our lifetimes, I ask Americans to look at this administration for what it is--a full frontal attack on the core elements of what makes America truly great: The rule of people over kings and oligarchs; the rule of law, not the dictates of an authoritarian; respect for the rights of all people, respect for all people; and a commitment to promoting the general welfare for the whole, not cruel and cheapskate voting. Let us commit ourselves, all of us--Democrats here in the Senate-- against this administration and to uphold the core values and principles of this beautiful Nation which we must fight to preserve and protect. I yield the floor.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“And the American people will not tolerate--will not tolerate--your disruption, your threat, your trying to end, in a sense, our democracy. Good news is this: Donald Trump's destructive agenda has one great weakness--the American people themselves. Most Americans vehemently reject the path which he is trying to take our country on costs, on chaos, on corruption, on democracy. The American people are not giving up. They are standing up. They are organizing. They are resisting, and Democrats are standing with them shoulder to shoulder and with our country.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“When the Founders drafted our Constitution, they feared a man like Donald Trump who sees the rule of law as a nuisance, considers the truth an inconvenience, regards his fellow citizens as little more than subjects: Kiss the ring, bow before the throne, or watch your back. That is the ethos of Donald Trump. He has moved with lightning speed to weaponize the Federal Government against anyone he thinks might oppose him. He doesn't believe in democracy, debate, or honest disagreement. He simply wants to crush his opponents. That is what dictators do. What is so interesting, Madam President, Americans are as angry about that as they are about their higher costs because the roots, Donald Trump, of democracy go deep in the American people.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“We are not just hearing it from Democrats. We are not just hearing it from people who are out on the streets protesting. We are hearing it from average folks who don't really care about politics but are getting hurt, and it is making them look at Donald Trump and say: Whoa, this is not what I bargained for. And, of course, last but not least is the threat to our democratic republic. He is acting like a King, a mob boss, a wannabe dictator. He said he wanted to be a dictator on day one; it looks like he is extending it. Any quarter of opposition that might say something in our tradition of free speech and debate, he tries to crush--crush the law firms, crush the universities, go after the judges which have been a foundation of our Republic. The judges are independent and are able to stop an executive that is going too far.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“Oh, no, maybe I am not. This tariff is going to stay in place. This one will be reduced. Then he flips it. Again, no sound businessperson is going to plan ahead. That is why, not Democrats, but places like the big banks and big analysts say chances of a recession could be as high as 60 percent. What does a recession mean to the average family? You could get laid off. If you need to find a job, it is harder. Costs go up. Stagflation is likely to occur. It is nasty, brutal to people. So chaos is there; and chaos, of course, is in foreign policy. I was amazed last week on one day when Donald Trump was over at the Vatican, he says he had a great talk with Putin and acted like there was going to be a deal. Next day, he says: I had a terrible talk with Putin, and he didn't even talk to Putin in between. He makes it up.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“Only an administration that exhibits a meanness--almost a viciousness--would do it. But that is what Trump, DOGE, and Musk and all their henchmen who work there are doing. This is just a terrible, terrible 100 days for anyone who depends on Medicaid. And that is a huge number--tens of millions of people in America. And there is also chaos in so many other places. Every single day, Donald Trump's administration lurches from one crisis to the next. For all their talk of bringing back meritocracy, their administration seems addicted to chaos and incompetence--hardly meritocratic. Every day, there is a new decision, new reversal, new course correction, only to give way the next day to whatever impulsive decision comes next. Tariffs are a great example. One day he says yes to tariffs. The next day he says: No, I am negotiating with countries.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“And when they are cutting the healthcare of veterans, these people who served us are told: ``Go away.'' And the cruelty with which they are firing people in the VA and other Agencies--I know one woman who was a former veteran. She served our country, risked her life, got injured. She was helped by the VA, then decided to work there. She saw the good work they were doing. She loved her job. She didn't get paid that much, but she loved helping her fellow veterans. One night, Friday night, she comes home and on her computer is: You are fired. Don't show up to the office until further notice. This woman was distraught. Why was she fired? What did she do wrong? What of her services serving the veterans at the Buffalo VA home--what services were not needed, were superfluous, were waste? There were none. She was just cruelly fired.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“And even if Donald Trump ended Trump's tariffs tomorrow, the damage is already done because leaders don't know what he is going to do next. It is not just the tariffs, the prices, and recession. Americans are worried about the costs of cutting to their healthcare, cutting their Social Security, cutting Medicaid. They are going to slash Medicaid. I was in six of the Republican districts in New York State last week. All six had Democrats, Republicans, Independents frightened to death about what will happen if Medicaid is cut. They could lose their jobs. Elderly people could be kicked out of nursing homes. Healthcare would diminish for everybody.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“She proudly voted for Donald Trump but told me she is seeing her costs rise 30 percent. She is frustrated--frustrated that the President she supported put her whole business, which she put everything into, at risk. Donald Trump's tariffs are a MAGA double whammy. Not only are they eating the people's bottom lines, his chaotic approach makes it harder for people in businesses to plan ahead at all. If you are a business, you don't know what he is going to do 2 weeks from now or 5 weeks from now, so you don't spend. You don't build a new plant. You don't hire the new worker. Small businesses have to cut back because they don't have a cushion. Every business is getting clobbered by Donald Trump's chaotic tariff policies.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“We urge national retailers to be honest with their constituents, with their customers. I urge national retailers, when you post prices online for your products, show the consumer exactly how much tariffs are added to the total price. Cars would have been X dollars, but now they are X plus Y dollars. Show it to the American people because it is hurting you, retailers. Don't let them blame you. They should be blaming Trump. Be honest with your customers. Show them exactly how Donald Trump's tariffs are making prices go up. Americans deserve to know who is picking their pockets. And smaller businesses shouldn't take a downfall of Donald Trump either. His policies are forcing them to an impossible choice: hike your prices or risk shutting down your doors. On Long Island, a small business owner told me she is losing sleep over tariffs.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“They are destroying the guardrails of government. They are destroying every part of anything that opposes them, all so they can take more money away from working people and give it to themselves. Let's talk about it. First and most urgently, maybe--they are all very urgent; that is the only reason I say ``maybe.'' But the first 100 days of Donald Trump have meant 100 days of rising costs. For months before he became President, Trump promised that if elected, costs would go down, that America would be affordable again. Well, prices haven't gone down. Quite the opposite. Groceries up; gas and energy prices up; clothing, cars, homes up. What about retirement savings? Down. What about consumer confidence? Down. In fact, consumer expectations are at their lowest level in over a decade.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“So tonight, Senate Democrats come to the floor to expose this administration for what it is: a full-frontal attack against the fabric of America, a full-frontal attack on our economy and on people's pocketbooks, and a full-frontal attack, finally, on working people in the middle class to take away people's Medicaid, their Social Security, veterans' care, healthcare, and more--all to give tax cuts to the very wealthy. Another way to describe this administration: Billionaires win, American families lose. There is a cabal of very greedy people who run the White House. They are rich. They have no understanding of what average Americans go through. And they plunder the government, then slash programs we so desperately need for average families--all for tax cuts for the rich. And there is a second thing they are doing.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“Maybe most of all, it has been 100 days of costs--costs going up and up and up because of tariffs; costs to working people because programs vital to them--Medicaid, Social Security, Medicare, veterans' benefits, housing, SNAP--are being threatened or even already taken away to some extent, and it will be a greater extent once we see their reconciliation bill. So Donald Trump promised a golden age on the day he took the oath of office. What Americans are learning instead is it is fool's gold. Americans got corrosion, erosion, and rot--corrosion across this administration, erosion across this economy, and rot within the foundations of our democracy.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“Madam President, first, I thank my colleagues, the ones I have heard so far--Senator Blumenthal, Senator Coons. I know Senator Klobuchar will be great as always, as will Senator Baldwin. But I thank them all for coming. Democrats are holding the floor late tonight to expose the disaster of Donald Trump's first 100 days in office. We will be speaking for several more hours. This week marks the 100th day of Donald Trump's second term as President of the United States. It has been 100 days from hell, and people are fed up. One hundred days in, the legacy of Donald Trump's second term is already set: chaos, corruption, costs. It is chaos, one fiasco after another. One minute, Donald Trump and his people say one thing, and then they say it is the opposite, and then they say something else entirely.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“So as America marks 100 days of the worst President of our lifetimes, I ask America to look at this administration for what it is: a full frontal attack on the core elements of what has made America truly great--the rule of people over kings and oligarchs, the rule of law and not the dictates of an authoritarian, respect for the rights of all people, and a commitment to ``promoting the general welfare'' for the whole of society--not cruel, cheap, and lying scapegoating. So let us commit ourselves, America. Let us commit ourselves to continue to struggle against this administration and to uphold the core values and principles of this great Nation. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“If you thought something like this could never happen in America, then unfortunately you were wrong. It is happening right in front of us. And what did Donald Trump have to say about the risk of deporting U.S. citizens? He said: Let me tell you that nothing will ever be perfect in this world. That is what he said. That is disgusting--just disgusting. If it was a member of his family trapped in such a calamity, would he say, ``Tough luck; nothing is perfect''? Donald Trump's inability to feel empathy for people who do not look like him is shocking to the core.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“He has fired public workers by the tens of thousands and illegally paralyzed Agency after Agency that helps everyday Americans. He has attacked the free press. He has attacked our education system. He has attacked our scientists. He is systematically attempting to weaken any political opposition, anyone who might hold him accountable. In the name of security, which is a favorite justification for many of history's despots, Trump is arresting people with little due process and, in some cases, without even regard to immigration status. Last week--just look at last week--four American citizens, all of them children, two of them battling life-threatening cancers, were deported from the U.S., from their homeland--they are citizens like we are--and sent to places like Honduras. Let me repeat: These are American citizens, Donald Trump.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“The only thing historic about Donald Trump's golden age is how fast public confidence in him has collapsed, faster than any other President in modern history. Americans don't trust him on the economy, nor should they. They don't trust him on keeping America safe, nor should they. They don't trust him on his ability to fight for the interests of ordinary people because they know that the whole place is run by a small cadre of billionaires who don't really care about average folks at all. And we are only 100 days in. And, finally, on a related subject, let me say this: As Donald Trump races to sabotage the American economy, he has likewise already inflicted lasting harm to the foundations of American democracy. When our Founders drafted the Constitution, they feared precisely a man like Donald Trump.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“The Dow Jones is on track for its worst April since 1932. Did you hear that, Donald Trump? Your beloved stock market is on track for the worst April since 1932, the last year of Herbert Hoover. I ask this Chamber, Mr. President: Is this what the golden age looks like? Are we supposed to feel good that Donald Trump has singlehandedly pushed us to the brink of a recession? This President, who governs chaotically and reverses himself like a weather vane in a windstorm, is driving the robust American economy into a ditch. I think if you asked Americans to pick one word that describes Donald Trump's economy and how he is handling it, it would be one word, a five-letter word: chaos, C-H-A-O-S. Another five-letter word is Trump, T-R-U-M-P. Chaos equals Trump; Trump equals chaos.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“To the large businesses that sell to consumers, I say: Show your customers how much tariffs are hurting their pocketbooks. People deserve to know the impact tariffs have on their finances. And certainly, when people hear it, they will let their Congressmen and Senators know. And businesses, then you will have a chance to get rid of these tariffs, which are so stultifying your ability to move forward. And it is also small businesses. They don't want to get blamed for hiking prices when Donald Trump's tariffs have put them in a terrible position--in a position that says: Raise your prices or close your doors. They hate doing either. And, finally, let's not forget Donald Trump's favorite measuring stick, the stock market, which he has conspicuously been silent about over the last few months.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“They are not thinking of buying the new car or new furniture because they are worried. And then businesses--seeing that, hearing that--they hold back. I have heard from business after business, large and small. Everything is on freeze. Everything is hold. And you know what that does? That leads to a recession. In fact, Amazon announced that they will begin displaying how much tariffs contribute to the total price of products to consumers. I urge more companies--particularly national retailers that compete with Amazon--to adopt this practice. If Amazon has the courage to display why prices are going up because of tariffs, so should all of our other national retailers who compete with them, and I am calling on them to do it now.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“Americans are still paying more and more today for their groceries, their rent, their housing, their gas, their cars, auto parts, drugs, and household necessities. And Donald Trump's asinine trade war has made it all the worse. And 44 percent of families now believe they will be worse off financially a year from now--a level of pessimism not even seen during the Great Depression or the 1970s' stagflation. According to an AP-NORC poll, half of Americans are worried about a recession and expect inflation to keep going up. And these aren't just poll numbers. When I talk to New Yorkers, when I hear from Americans, that is exactly where they are at. Consumer sentiment is at a decades- long low. It has plunged by 30 percent. So the consumer is holding back. They are not spending. They are not planning that trip to see the grandkids.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“The truth is this: No President in modern history has promised more on day one and delivered less by day 100 than Donald Trump. In record time, the President has turned a golden promise into an economic ticking time bomb. It is getting worse every day, and he calls it progress. Let's remember what Donald Trump said again and again on the campaign trail. Starting on day one-- He said-- we will end inflation and make America affordable again. A vote for Trump-- He said-- means your groceries will be cheaper. We are going to get your energy prices down by 50 percent. Well, the opposite is happening. The economic winds are pointing in the wrong direction and reaching hurricane speed.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“We knew Donald Trump was lying by the time he pardoned 1,600 insurrectionists a few hours later, pardoned outright criminals who beat up cops--so much for ``Back the Blue''--pardoning lawbreakers who had an intent on disrupting the Congress as we counted electoral votes. What a disgrace. What kind of morals is he setting for this country? This will go down in history as one of the ways America has declined under Donald Trump. So, this morning, let's talk about Donald Trump's so-called golden age. Democrats are going to hammer away at this topic all day long today, as we have done many days in the past. And tonight we will come to this Chamber and hold the floor until late tonight to mark these dismal 100 days by speaking the truth. Tonight, we will come to the floor and hold the Chamber to mark these dismal 100 days. What is the truth?”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“And when young people across New York tell me they are scared of being rounded up on the streets and sent to a prison in Louisiana because of the way they look or because of some blog post they may have shared a year ago or years ago, it is hard to fathom that this is all happening in America in 2025. Mr. President, 100 days into this Presidency, there is a feeling of incompetence and indecision and chaos in the White House eating away at much of the country, emanating from the man who occupies the Oval Office. Donald Trump promised a golden age on the first day he became President. What Americans got, instead, was fool's gold.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“When seniors in Buffalo tell me they are legitimately worried about whether or not they will keep seeing their Social Security checks--and that is not just a political expression. They wonder how they are going to pay the rent, buy the food, buy the drugs next month if their Social Security check isn't there. When doctors and health workers in Albany tell me they fear losing Medicaid funding for their hospitals and clinics, they are worried about caring for their patients, who desperately need help and may not get it, they are worried about their jobs. When Republican businessowners on Long Island tell me they are losing sleep over Donald Trump's tariffs, it is because their businesses may go under. This is not just a political game. People are really worried, in ways that I haven't seen in a long time.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. President, Donald Trump's first 100 days have been 100 days from hell. Over the past week, as I have thought about this 100-day mark, as I have met with people throughout my State--with business owners and nurses and seniors and veterans and many Republicans--I couldn't think of another way to describe the sentiment I felt back home. These 100 days have been 100 days from hell. Donald Trump is not governing like a President of a democratic republic; he is acting like a King, a despot, a want-to-be dictator. Remember that during the campaign, he indicated that he would be a dictator just on day one, but everything we have seen so far shows he wants to be a dictator for much, much longer. He is eating away at America's rule of law, America's norms, America's fundamental values, and people are scared, people are angry.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.”
Senate29 April 2025Source ↗
“The simple answer is, again: because their agenda is so unpopular with the American people, and neither House--and no Republican Senator--wants to be left holding this hot potato. The backlash Republicans are getting from the public--whether it is town halls, in the streets, or through dismal polling data--should serve as a warning to our colleagues on the other side: If they proceed with their agenda, the political outcry will be enormous, just enormous. So as long as Donald Trump pushes America down the dangerous road we are already on, he will face resistance from Democrats, from the courts, and, most importantly, from the American people themselves. I yield the floor.”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“It is no wonder Republicans are in such disarray--House Republicans fighting with one another, Senate Republicans fighting with one another, and Senate and House Republican leadership not even on the same page. That is incredible. Why? Because their programs are so unpopular with the American people. Democrats are united in our mission to lower costs for families, protect healthcare, defend American democracy. Meanwhile, Republicans are at loggerheads with each other. As I said, House Republicans are fighting among themselves. Senate Republicans are fighting among themselves. Leadership in both Chambers are at odds. And why do Republicans face this situation where they are so at odds with one another?”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“More likely to lose a job, harder to find a new job, more likely to have prices go up and not be able to afford those price increases. Finally, Senate Democrats will do what Senate Republicans refuse to do: conduct oversight on this administration. We will do it on our own. That means pushing for investigations into the leadership failures at the Pentagon. What Hegseth did there was horrible. It means pushing back against attacks on Social Security. It means resisting the defunding of public resources like PBS. It means exposing the chilling arrests of Americans without due process. Day after day after day, we will hammer home the Republican agenda, and Americans will see the difference between Democratic unity and Republican disarray.”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“We have seen that already, for instance, with the antics of Mr. Hegseth. We will also fight Donald Trump's disastrous trade war. Soon, the Senate will vote on bipartisan legislation I cosponsored with Senators Wyden, Kaine, and Paul that nullifies Donald Trump's trade war. To nobody's surprise, the President has already threatened to veto this bill. Senate Republicans who know how bad tariffs are for their States should join us to nullify Donald Trump's trade war and ignore his veto threat, and, if necessary, we should override the President's veto. These tariffs are so bad and are already pushing America into recession. ``Recession'' is an economic word for shrinking growth. But what does it mean to American families?”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“The cost of healthcare will come up for those least able to afford it. Healthcare workers would lose their jobs. Millions could lose coverage. And for what? So billionaires can pay less in taxes. It is a revolting--thoroughly revolting--agenda. Democrats will vehemently oppose this bill and all the harmful elements of the Republican agenda at every opportunity. Tomorrow, as I said a moment ago, Senate Democrats will take to the floor to highlight the disaster of Trump's first 100 days. On Wednesday, we will take to the Senate steps and join in one voice with our House counterparts to decry the ways this President has already--already--only 100 days in, failed our country. In the coming weeks, we will continue to oppose deeply unqualified nominees who have no business serving in government.”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“They want to cut taxes for billionaires and make working people pay for it. They want to add over $52 trillion--trillion dollars--to the national debt. I think of my grandson when I think of that. They want to make the biggest cuts to Medicaid ever. This is the Republican agenda: Billionaires win. American families lose. Republicans have gotten by so far with a bunch of empty and deceptive promises that none of the outrageous cuts they propose will come back to harm ordinary Americans. But their rhetorical runway is quickly going to run out. Soon, they will have to show everyone the real details of their legislation, and it is not going to be pretty. Even if Republicans pass a fraction of the cuts they are proposing to Medicaid, it would devastate communities--urban, suburban, and particularly rural.”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. President, so let's talk about what is going to happen in the Senate in this period, in this work period. Now, we convene at the start of this pivotal work period. This week, Republicans are expected to begin marking up the text of their reconciliation bill. With so many problems facing our country, with a threat of recession on the horizon, with tariffs driving costs up, and Elon Musk taking a meat cleaver to Social Security, to veterans' care, and to cancer research, what are Republicans in Congress spending their time on?”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“I visited six of seven congressional districts represented by Republicans in Congress in New York, and I spoke with small business owners, seniors, healthcare workers, veterans, local electeds, Republicans, Democrats, Independents--people from all walks of life. People are anxious about tariffs driving up their costs, about inflation eroding their paychecks, and are fearful for the future of Social Security. Last week, I met with the owner of a women's clothing shop in Suffolk County, a well-known woman in Suffolk County, the head of a very successful business, Tandy's clothes, and a longtime fan of the President. She said she proudly voted for him--right when I was standing there--but now she said her small business wouldn't be able to absorb the shock of a prolonged trade war, that her costs were already up 30 percent.”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“Americans are already beginning to see that Donald Trump has betrayed them, that Donald Trump's campaign promises before he won election and his actions as President are almost in direct contradiction on issue after issue after issue. They are seeing that Donald Trump is not on their side; he is not on the side of working families. He is on the side of the billionaires, and we are all suffering for it. What happened during recess corroborated all of this. For the last 2 weeks, my Democratic colleagues and I have seen Americans' frustrations firsthand. During the Easter recess, I traveled from one end of my State to the other.”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗
“Donald Trump claims he is a better President than George Washington, but he takes inspiration more from the likes of Viktor Orban or worse. So 100 days into Donald Trump's second term, what exactly do Americans have to feel good about? Is it that Donald Trump's trade war has pushed our country to the brink of recession? Is it that his tariffs will cost families an average of $4,700 annually? Is it that CEOs and business owners are warning about rising costs, empty shelves, and an economic downturn? Maybe it is that the Dow Jones is on track for its worst April since 1932. The truth is, Donald Trump's Presidency is no golden age; it is a disaster--the worst start to a new administration in modern times. Americans are already fed up.”
Senate28 April 2025Source ↗