Van Hollen Says Schumer's Team Is Trying to Scare Senators as the Fight to Lead the New Democratic Senate Heats Up

Sen. Chris Van Hollen took his campaign to lead Senate Democrats to the Sunday shows, and he came out swinging at the man he wants to replace.

On ABC's "This Week," the Maryland Democrat accused Chuck Schumer's team of trying to "instill fear" in senators who might back him for majority leader, and he argued that the race remains far more open than Schumer's camp claims. He also charged that the Schumer operation has been spreading misinformation about where the votes stand.

Schumer is not budging. In a written statement, the longtime leader said he welcomes a conversation about the caucus's future and repeated that he already has the votes to keep the job, ABC News reported.

In a separate appearance on "Fox News Sunday," Van Hollen claimed that a list circulated by Schumer's side counted some of his own supporters as Schumer votes. He put his own support at "about 15 and growing," up from the more than 10 senators he cited on Thursday, according to Yahoo News. Schumer's team has not released a whip list of its own.

Van Hollen also suggested that efforts to move the leadership election earlier were a sign of nerves in the Schumer camp, saying a team confident of victory would not be pushing the calendar.

The public tally tells a different story, at least for now. Axios counted 14 senators, Schumer included, publicly backing the current leader, against five for Van Hollen. The winner needs 28 or 29 votes, depending on how Alaska's still-unsettled Senate race ends, and the secret-ballot vote is set for Dec. 1, Axios reported. Many senators, including most of the incoming freshmen, have not committed either way.

Schumer's allies told The Hill they expect him to finish with more than 40 votes, and they dismissed the challenge as a "distraction". Some of them argue Van Hollen cannot win and is really using the race to extract progressive concessions, chief among them an end to the legislative filibuster. Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin, who has not endorsed Van Hollen, told reporters in Denver that she will not vote for Schumer, The Hill reported.

Van Hollen's coalition leans hard to the left. Sen. Bernie Sanders and Michigan Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed are in his corner, while Schumer's public backers include Sens. Ruben Gallego, Angela Alsobrooks and Kirsten Gillibrand. The progressive Working Families Party has urged Schumer not to seek another term as leader.

The stakes go well beyond who gets the corner office. Van Hollen has called for abolishing the Senate filibuster, arguing that a simple majority of senators should be able to act, and he has ruled out a run for the White House in 2028, The Hill reported. The filibuster is the 60-vote rule that forces the majority to win at least some support from the other side before most bills can pass. With Democrats taking control of the chamber in January, the leader's view of that rule may decide how much of the left's agenda can be rammed through on party-line votes.

That prospect is already straining the Democratic caucus from the other direction. Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania said on Saturday that it would be troubling if his colleagues elected Van Hollen, citing what he described as Van Hollen's hostility toward Israel, and he signaled that such an outcome could push him to rethink his place in the party, the Washington Examiner reported.

So Schumer is squeezed from both sides. To his left, activists and a band of senators say he is too cautious for the moment. To his center, Fetterman warns that handing the gavel to Van Hollen would send a hostile message to one of America's closest allies.

For Republicans heading into the minority, this is not a spectator sport. The majority leader decides which bills reach the floor, how quickly judges and nominees are confirmed, and whether the minority keeps its most important tool. A leader elected on a promise to scrap the filibuster would put Republicans one rules vote away from losing their ability to slow or stop legislation on taxes, energy, the border and the courts.

The Senate's design reflects the founders' caution about quick, narrow majorities. The filibuster is a custom rather than a clause of the Constitution, but it has long served the same purpose of cooling the passions of the moment. Conservatives should watch the Dec. 1 vote closely, because whoever wins will set the terms for every fight of the next two years.

Liberty Bell Report will follow the race through the caucus vote.