(C) Common Dreams
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OK, Chuck Schumer. Trump Just Crossed Your Red Line. Now What? [1]

['Aaron Regunberg', 'Edith Olmsted', 'Marin Scotten', 'Michael Tomasky', 'Grace Segers', 'Alex Shephard', 'Matt Ford']

Date: 2025-04-15

But when I reached out to Schumer’s office late Monday, the senator hadn’t even posted a response to the news yet. Eventually his office put out a boilerplate statement, which they emailed to me: “The law is clear, due process was grossly violated, and the Supreme Court has clearly spoken that the Trump administration must facilitate and effectuate the return of Abrego Garcia. He should be returned to the U.S. immediately. Due process and the rule of law are cornerstones of American society for citizens and noncitizens alike and not to follow that is dangerous and outrageous. A threat to one is a threat to all.” In reply, I referenced Schumer’s statement that “we will all have to take extraordinary action” if Trump defied the court, and asked if he had any additional comments about the kind of action needed right now. His office has not responded.

This failure of leadership is particularly maddening from the leader of the opposition party in the Senate, because the upper chamber remains an institution that, as Mitch McConnell demonstrated, provides incredibly powerful tools to the minority party. We know what Senate Democrats could be doing if they decided “to take extraordinary action.” Just a few weeks ago we saw just one senator, Cory Booker, grind the chamber to a standstill for over 24 hours—an impressive effort, though arbitrary and undirected. Can you imagine how much more powerful it would be if Senate Democrats came together to organize a filibuster relay team that could continuously gum up the Senate until Trump agreed to follow the Supreme Court’s order?

While there have been a few individual demonstrations of courage—like Senator Chris Van Hollen’s commitment to travel to El Salvador to push for Abrego Garcia’s release—there has been no indication of plans or preparations for “extraordinary action” by the party. Is Schumer’s banal press statement really the best that Democratic leadership can do?

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[1] Url: https://newrepublic.com/article/194017/chuck-schumer-trump-defied-supreme-court-red-line

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