Chuck's Controversy

Senator Chuck Schumer

On Wednesday, March 4th, Senator Chuck Schumer was speaking at a pro-choice rally when he made some controversial comments. While addressing the crowd, Schumer appeared to threaten two Supreme Court justices. Schumer claimed that justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh would be punished if they voted in favor of restricting abortion rights. Schumer stated, "I want to tell you Gorsuch. I want to tell you Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price. You won't know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions". 

The comments made by Schumer are seen by many to be out-of-line. Several people are questioning what "price" Schumer was referring to. Did he mean "price" in terms of a violent threat, economic loss, or simply political damage? Several officials in Washington have taken issue with Schumer's words; President Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and Chief Justice John Roberts have all spoken out against Schumer. In a statement, Roberts referred to Schumer's remarks as "inappropriate" and "dangerous". 

A spokesperson for Schumer claims that he was referring to a political price when he challenged the Supreme Court justices. The spokesperson stated that the comments were meant to warn Gorsuch and Kavanaugh that if they voted in favor of restricting abortion, there would be "a major grassroots movement on the issue of reproductive rights against the decision". 

I think that Schumer's comments against the justices were certainly inappropriate, but I don't believe that they were meant to be of a threatening nature. His remarks were likely referencing a political price; however, he never should have referred to specific justices by name. Doing that was unnecessary and could prove to be dangerous to Gorsuch and Kavanaugh. Schumer did not intend to incite violence, but some of his followers could potentially misinterpret his statement. Despite this possibility, Schumer should not have to deal with legal repercussions for his words. If we begin restricting speech on the basis of a remote potential for it to lead to violence, none of us would ever be able to speak again.  





The Response from Chief Justice John Roberts

More Details on Chuck Schumer's Remarks