'A Guy Who Wants to Tinker Around the Edges': Sanders Makes the Case Against Schumer for Senate Leader

US Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday offered a blistering assessment of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's leadership, saying his approach to everything from Israel and artificial intelligence to economic inequality demonstrates why Democrats need new leadership.

"I think, in this moment in American history, Chuck's views are way out of touch with where the American people are at—and especially with where [the base of] the Democratic Party is," Sanders (I-Vt.) told John Nichols, executive director of The Nation.

"On issue after issue, I think he is just not in tune with where his constituents are at," he said of the New York Democrat.

Sanders—who acknowledges that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza as determined by a UN commission of inquiry and many other experts—took particular aim at Schumer's continued support for US military aid to the country. Sanders argued that the United States should not provide "another nickel" in weapons assistance to an ally that the International Court of Justice and others say is an apartheid state, and whose prime minister is a fugitive from the International Criminal Court, wanted for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The two-time social democratic presidential candidate also questioned whether Schumer would fight for a billionaire wealth tax to fund universal childcare, tuition-free public colleges, and affordable housing.

"And I think that basically on other issues Chuck is a guy who wants to tinker around the edges," Sanders said.

Schumer's decision last year to help advance a Republican government funding bill sparked intense backlash from progressives, who accused him of surrendering Democrats' leverage and called on him to resign.

Sanders also criticized Schumer for failing to meaningfully address the power of the technology industry's billionaire executives and the rapid proliferation of artificial intelligence and data centers.

The criticism comes amid mounting progressive dissatisfaction with the party's congressional leadership following Democrats' sweeping midterm victories. As Common Dreams has reported, progressive organizers have argued that the electoral results represent a mandate for transformative change, not simply a return to business as usual under establishment Democrats.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) has emerged as a potential alternative to Schumer—and one who Sanders said he would support.

"It's not a time for incrementalism," Van Hollen recently said. "It's a time to move forward a very bold kitchen table agenda."

Van Hollen has urged colleagues not to give Schumer a "blank check" without commitments to an ambitious economic program.

Schumer has sounded confident that he will be elected majority leader after Democrats retake control of Congress in January.

"I am going to be elected leader, OK, and we're united on the issues," Schumer told The Washington Sun on Wednesday. "We're united. We're united on costs and chaos."