Chuck Schumer

Chuck Schumer
U.S. Senate, New York
Incumbent
In office
January 3, 1999-Present
Term ends
January 3, 2017
Years in position	14
Party	Democratic
Predecessor	Alfonse M. D'Amato (R)
Compensation
Base salary	$174,000/year
Elections and appointments
Last election	November 2, 2010
First elected	November 3, 1998
Next election	November 8, 2016
Campaign $	$46,984,835
Term limits	N/A
Prior offices
U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 9th District
1993-1999
U.S. House of Representatives from New York
10th District (1983-1993) 16th District (1981-1983)
New York State Assembly from the 45th District
1975-1980
Education
Bachelor's	Harvard University
J.D.	Harvard University
Personal
Birthday	November 23, 1950
Place of birth	Brooklyn, New York
Profession	Politician
Net worth	$635,008
Religion	Judaism
Websites
Office website
Campaign website

Charles Ellis "Chuck" Schumer (b. November 23, 1950) is a Democratic member of the United States Senate from New York. He was first elected to the Senate in 1998.

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Schumer is a "far-left Democratic leader".

Biography

Schumer was born in Brooklyn and attended Harvard College, where he became interested in politics and campaigned for Eugene McCarthy in 1968. After completing his undergraduate degree, he continued to Harvard Law School, earning his Juris Doctor with honors in 1974.

Career

Schumer passed the New York State Bar Exam in early 1975 but immediately entered politics.

Committee assignments

U.S. Senate

2013-2014

Schumer serves on the following Senate committees:

• Committee on Rules and Administration Chairman
• Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee
  • Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance and Investment
  • Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection Members
  • Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development
• United States Senate Judiciary Committee
  • Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees and Border Security Chair
  • Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law
  • Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism
  • Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights subcommittee
• Senate Finance Committee
  • The Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy
  • The Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness
  • The Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight

2011-2012

Schumer served on the following committees:

• Committee on Rules and Administration, Chairman
• Senate Judiciary Committee
  • Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Citizenship, Chair
  • Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights
  • Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law
• Senate Finance Committee
  • Subcommittee on Healthcare
  • Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy
  • Subcommittee on Taxation, IRS Oversight, and Long-Term Growth
• Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee
  • Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development
  • Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection
  • Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance and Investment

Issues

Gang of Eight

Schumer is a member of the group of senators deemed the "Gang of Eight." This term is used to reference eight of the most influential Senators on immigration reform and includes four senators from each party. The group calls for comprehensive and bipartisan immigration legislation that includes their "four basic pillars":

• 1. A “tough but fair path to citizenship . . . .contingent upon securing our borders and tracking whether legal immigrants have left the country as required”;
• 2. Reform our legal immigration system with a greater eye toward our economic needs;
• 3. Workplace verification; and
• 4. Setting up a system for admitting future workers (although the term “guest worker” is not used).

Senate Judiciary Committee

Senator Schumer was first appointed to the Senate Judiciary Committee shortly after he was sworn into the Senate in 1999. The Senator has participated in the Supreme Court confirmation hearings of Chief Justice John Roberts in 2005 along with Associate Justices Samuel Alito in 2006 and Sonia Sotomayor in 2009.

Senator Schumer serves as the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees and Border Security. In addition, the Senator serves on the Senate Judiciary Subcommittees on Administrative Oversight and the Courts, Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights, Crime and Drugs, and Terrorism and Homeland Security.

Political positions

Specific Votes

Senator Schumer voted in favor of TARP. According to a Gallup poll from September 13, 2010, 61% of Americans disapprove of TARP, while 37% approve.

Schumer also supported the stimulus bill. 57% of U.S. voters believe that the stimulus has either hurt the economy (36%) or had no impact (21%). 38% believe the stimulus helped the economy.

In addition, Schumer voted for the health care reform bill. 57% of likely voters at least somewhat favor repeal of the health care reform bill, including 46% who strongly favor repeal. 35% of likely voters oppose repeal. 51% of likely voters believe the health care reform bill will be bad for the country, while 36% believe it will be beneficial.

Finally, Schumer voted against an amendment that would have defunded the Obama Administration's lawsuit against Arizona over its new immigration law. As of July 8, 2010, 56% of U.S. voters were opposed to the Obama Administration's challenge to the Arizona immigration law.

Fiscal Cliff

Schumer voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89/8 vote on January 1, 2013.

Elections

2010

On November 2, 2010, Schumer was re-elected to the United States Senate for a third term. He defeated Jay Townsend (R/Conservative), Colia Clark (Green), and Randy A. Credico (Anti-Prohibition, Libertarian).

United States Senate, New York General Election, 2010
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Chuck Schumer Incumbent	64%	3,047,880
	Republican	Jay Townsend	31.1%	1,480,423
	Green	Colia Clark	3.5%	168,384
	Anti-Prohibition, Libertarian	Randy A. Credico	0.9%	42,341
	Blank/Scattering	N/A	0.5%	24,871
Total Votes				4,763,899

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Chuck Schumer, click [show] to expand the section.

2004 On November 2, 2004, Chuck Schumer won re-election to the United States Senate. He defeated Howard Mills (R), Marilyn F. O'Grady (Conservative), David E. McReynolds, (G), Donald Silberger (L), Martin Koppel (Socialist Workers), and Abraham Hirschfelt (Builders) in the general election. U.S. Senate, New York General Election, 2004 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Chuck Schumer incumbent 62.1% 4,384,907      Republican Howard Mills 23% 1,625,069      Conservative Marilyn F. O'Grady 3.1% 220,960      Green David E. McReynolds 0.5% 36,942      Libertarian Donald Silberger 0.3% 19,073      Socialist Workers Martin Koppel 0.2% 14,811      Builders Abraham Hirschfeld 0.2% 16,196      Independent Write-in 10.5% 744,943 Total Votes 7,062,901 1998 On November 3, 1998, Chuck Schumer won election to the United States Senate. He defeated Alfonse D'Amato (R), Corinne E. Kurtz (Marijuana Reform), Joel Kovel (G), William P. McMillen (L), Rose Ann Berbeo (Socialist Workers) in the general election. U.S. Senate, New York General Election, 1998 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Chuck Schumer 53.7% 2,386,314      Republican Alfone D'Amato 37.8% 1,680,203      Marijuana Reform Corinne E. Kurtz 0.8% 34,281      Green Joel Kovel 0.3% 14,735      Libertarian William P. McMillen 0.2% 8,223      Socialist Workers Rose Ann Berbeo 0.1% 3,513      N/A Write-in 7.2% 319,072 Total Votes 4,446,341

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Schumer is available dating back to 2004. Based on available campaign finance records, Schumer raised a total of $46,984,835 during that time period. This information was last updated on March 23, 2013.

Chuck Schumer's Campaign Contribution History
Year	Office	Result	Contributions
2010	U.S. Senate (New York)		$19,519,748
2004	U.S. Senate (New York)		$27,465,087
Grand Total Raised			$46,984,835

2010

Breakdown of the source of Schumer's campaign funds before the 2010 election.

Schumer was re-elected to the U.S. Senate for a third term in 2010. His campaign committee raised a total of $19,519,748 and spent $19,356,984.

U.S. Senate, New York, 2010 - Chuck Schumer Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$19,519,748
Total Spent	$19,356,984
Total Raised by General Election Opponent	$218,557
Total Spent by General Election Opponent	$217,593
Top contributors to Chuck Schumer's campaign committee
Paul, Weiss et al	$145,550
Paulson & Co	$137,300
Weitz & Luxenberg	$86,200
Schulte, Roth & Zabel	$80,600
Fragomen, Del Rey et al	$72,700
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Securities & Investment	$2,718,464
Lawyers/Law Firms	$2,174,910
Real Estate	$1,252,490
Lobbyists	$571,713
Misc Finance	$561,200

Analysis

Lifetime voting record

See also: Lifetime voting records of United States Senators and Representatives

According to the website GovTrack, Schumer missed 55 of 4,560 roll call votes from Jan 1999 to Apr 2013, which is 1.2% of votes during that period. This is better than the median of 1.7% among the lifetime records of senators currently serving.

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Schumer paid his congressional staff a total of $3,406,655 in 2011. He ranked 4th on the list of the lowest paid Democratic Senatorial Staff Salaries and he ranked 5th overall of the lowest paid Senatorial Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, New York ranked 4th in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.

Net worth

See also: Net Worth of United States Senators and Representatives

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Schumer's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $320,017 to $950,000. That averages to $635,008, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Senators in 2011 of $20,795,450. His average net worth decreased by 25.38% from 2010.

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Schumer's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $472,019 and $1,230,000. That averages to $851,009.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Senators in 2010 of $19,383,524.

National Journal vote ratings

See also: National Journal vote ratings

2012

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Schumer ranked 21st in the liberal rankings among members of the U.S. Senate.

2011

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Schumer ranked 15th in the liberal rankings among U.S. Senators.

Percentage voting with party

November 2011

The website Open Congress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus. According to the website, Chuck Schumer voted with the Democratic Party 96.3% of the time, which ranked 7th among the 51 Senate Democratic members in November 2011.

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Chuck + Schumer + New York + Senate

All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.

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Personal

Schumer and his wife, Iris Weinshall, were married September 21, 1980. The Schumers have two children, Jessica and Alison, and they live in Brooklyn.

External links

• Social media:
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
• Biographies:
  • U.S. Congress
  • NNDB
  • Wikipedia
• Political profiles:
  • GovTrack
  • National Journal
  • OpenCongress
  • Project Vote Smart
  • Roll Call
  • CongressMerge
• Fact-checking:
  • PolitiFact
• Financial:
  • FEC
  • OpenSecrets.org
  • LegiStorm.com
• Interest group ratings:
  • National Journal
  • Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions:
  • On The Issues
  • Project Vote Smart
• Legislation:
  • Congress.gov
• Public statements:
  • Project Vote Smart
• Voting record:
  • Project Vote Smart
  • Washington Post
• Works by or about:
  • WorldCat
• Media appearances:
  • C-SPAN
  • Charlie Rose
  • IMDb
• Media coverage:
  • Bloomberg
  • New York Times
  • Wall Street Journal
  • Washington Post

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• Collected news and commentary at New York Magazine
• Collected news and commentary at Newsday
• Collected news and commentary at U.S. News & World Report

References

Political offices
Preceded by Alfonse D'Amato	U.S. Senate - New York 1999-Present	Succeeded by '
Preceded by Thomas J. Manton	U.S. House of Representatives - District 9 1993–1999	Succeeded by Anthony D. Weiner
Preceded by Mario Biaggi	U.S. House of Representatives - District 10 1983–1993	Succeeded by Ed Towns
Preceded by Elizabeth Holtzman	U.S. House of Representatives - District 16 1981–1983	Succeeded by Charles B. Rangel
Preceded by Stephen J. Solarz	New York State Assembly - District 45 1975 – 1980	Succeeded by Daniel Feldman