With a pivotal Senate election on tap in 2022 in a midterm year, Democrats need to start thinking about a change. The House majority appears to be on shaky ground for the next election, especially after a redistricting largely controlled by Republicans. However, the 2022 Senate map appears to be ripe for the taking by Democrats. If the Democrats win both races in Georgia in January, they could further build on their majority the next time around. With that in mind, the Democrats need to start thinking about message. Although it is a remote possibility, Democrats need to give thought to replacing Chuck Schumer as their Senate party leader.

McConnell Has Owned Schumer and Has His Number

While it is hard to pin the fact that Mitch McConnell has run roughshod over the Senate on Schumer, the Democrats' record in the last two Senate elections needs to be addressed. The Democrats have lost seats in Florida and then largely failed to win races in Red territory in 2020, even though Joe Biden drew 80 million votes. Even though Schumer recruited strong candidates, at some point, the coach needs to get thrown overboard when the team is not winning. The Democrats have had two disappointing Senate elections on Schumer's watch.

Schumer seems to be really inept when it comes to messaging. While McConnell has the power of the Senate rules behind him, the Majority Leader seems to have Schumer's number at every juncture and for every Senate showdown. It is almost incomprehensible how Schumer cannot explain policies that protect the American public. While McConnell is one step shy of Satan, one of his possessions is owning Schumer.

The Republicans have become successful at making him into a caricature and millstone that they hang around the neck of every Democratic Senate candidate. The GOP has inevitably begun to try to turn Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff into living personifications of Schumer in Georgia, and there are signs that it may be working. While throwing a leader overboard to deprive the Republicans of a campaign strategy may be hasty, at some point, Schumer becomes toxic for all Democratic Senate candidates. The Republicans have already written the playbook and can keep coming back to it in every campaign.

The time would simply be right for the Democrats to throw Schumer overboard. Schumer does not have any particularly indispensable and irreplaceable legislative skill that could not be exercised by a Senator who is a little more savvy on messaging. Even though the Democrats picked up at least one Senate seat, they need to treat the 2020 elections as a loss. Having Schumer as a target in the run up to 2022 will no doubt give every Republican Senator and Senate candidate an opening to deflect and distract from their own sorry records.

Moreover, Schumer is going to be distracted with trying to shore up his left flank in advance of his own election in 2022. New York has seen numerous establishment figures go down to shocking defeats, and Schumer may be the next in that line. There has been strong talk that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is contemplating a primary challenge. With his left flank exposed, Schumer may try to take his Senate caucus over a bridge too far to burnish his own credentials.

Nonetheless, Nobody Stepped Up to Challenge Schumer as the Leader

Of course, none of this will happen. The Democrats simply do not have the courage for a leadership shakeup right now, and there is no movement afoot to replace Schumer. There is also no predicate for a leadership challenge. Dick Durbin would be a much more levelheaded leader who would present better judgement. He would be a much better foil for McConnell than Schumer. However, Durbin would not want to jeopardize his job as the Majority Whip and the next in line to challenge Schumer. Thus, all of this is wishful thinking. Schumer has already been elected as the Democrats' leader in the next Senate.

This would not stop us from expressing sincere disappointment in how Schumer has done his job. While he held the caucus together in the fight to save Obamacare, he is also the captain of the team when it comes to elections. He has not intelligently devoted financial resources, and acts in a reactive manner in campaigns. He simply lacks the vision and the charisma to be an effective leader in the Senate.