Senator Chuck Schumer’s Strategy to Use Dead-End Votes as Political Tools in Elections

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. is strategizing a series of votes to support struggling incumbents and create divisions among Republicans on critical issues.

Although the bills have slim chances of passing, they are aimed at forcing senators to take a stance on key issues. Schumer recently orchestrated a vote on a border security deal that didn’t succeed, but allowed vulnerable incumbents like Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio and Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., to demonstrate their support for border protection.

The Senate is set to vote on the Right to Contraception Act this Wednesday, and Schumer intends to schedule a vote later in the month on a bill safeguarding in-vitro fertilization (IVF). Additional symbolic votes are in the works, as revealed by Schumer to Punchbowl News.

Republicans have disregarded Schumer’s strategy as a political maneuver geared towards the upcoming elections.

“They are more focused on playing politics rather than actually securing the things they claim to support,” remarked Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., to Punchbowl News. “They have resorted to scare tactics throughout the summer, showing little regard for the false fears they are instigating in women and families.”

Notably, Republicans are in disagreement over how to vote on the contraception bill, with tensions escalating during a recent lunch meeting where participants debated whether to advance the bill, according to Punchbowl News. Meanwhile, Sen. Joni Erst, R-Iowa, has put forth her own proposal for access to contraception.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, a contender for the GOP leadership role, emphasized the importance of Republicans sticking together to advance the measure. On the other hand, GOP Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., cautioned against prolonging a process that Democrats are using as a trap, as per Punchbowl News.

“The Democrats seem to have little else to focus on; they avoid discussions on inflation and the border,” observed Thune to Punchbowl News. “Abortion is an issue that they believe can garner political points.”

Schumer is also contemplating a vote on a tax bill that Republicans oppose, but that includes benefits for Ohio residents impacted by the train derailment in East Palestine, as well as an expansion of the child tax credit, according to Punchbowl News.