Former rival nominates Schumer as New York senator. Everything'

It was a prime example of the 1998 elections.

Democratic Congressman Chuck Schumer and Republican Senator Al D'Amato faced off in a nasty and costly race for New York's Senate seat.

D'Amato, a three-term incumbent who had been nicknamed “Sen.” Pothole' for his work on citizen services argued that he knew how to deliver for New York. He portrayed Schumer as a die-hard liberal. Schumer called D'Amato a liar and untrustworthy.

Schumer won, ending D'Amato's 18-year career in the Senate.

More than two decades later, D'Amato now tips his hat to his successor and praises Schumer's ability to get things done. In a twist on his own nickname, he calls Schumer “Sen. Everything.”

“He didn't hold back when we needed money for our sewage treatment plant and said, 'Oh, this is a Republican stronghold.' He worked for it. He got it for us,” he said. “I want to tell you, I bow to him.”

“If there are people in the Republican Party who are upset with me for saying things like that about him, then screw them. I call it like I see it,” he continued.

Schumer's rise to the Senate's most influential position over the past 25 years has given him increasing influence over shaping legislation and allowing him to provide funding and projects for his home state.

If Republicans swing the Senate in next month's elections, that influence is likely to suffer a setback.

Connected to New York

Even as his power and portfolio in Washington have grown as he has risen from freshman senator to Senate majority leader, Schumer remains tied to New York.

From parades through Manhattan to the annual State Fair in Syracuse, he makes it a point to visit each of New York's 62 boroughs each year.

“I find being on the ground and actually talking to people – real, flesh-and-blood people – is a much more effective way to both learn and understand what people need. So I keep going,” Schumer told Spectrum News during one of these recent tours of upstate New York. “I love it. I love it just as much today as I did the first year.”

The 62-county visits are a way to connect with conservative voters in the Upstate who are typically wary of Downstate Democrats. They also fit Schumer's reputation as a workhorse.

Schumer says they inspire his legislative work and give him ideas for macro policy proposals in D.C. that can have tangible, small benefits at home.

“There’s local and national. Not only do I enjoy doing both, not only is it an important part of my job to do both, but one helps you do the other,” he said.

A photo of Schumer at a press conference. (Photo courtesy of Schumer's office)

Record for New York

Perhaps few bills underscore this local-national approach more than the CHIPS and Science Act, which was intended to encourage domestic production of semiconductors.

Schumer worked with Republican Sen. Todd Young of Indiana on the bill — an idea partially hatched in the Senate gym.

“I could trust him when something needed to be kept confidential during the course of negotiations and never abuse my trust,” Young said. “The currency of this place is trust and respect. And he never let me down.”

The law, signed by President Joe Biden in 2022, has triggered commitments for tens of billions of dollars in spending to build and modernize computer chip plants across the country, including in New York.

In 2022, Micron announced plans to spend up to $100 billion over two decades to build a factory outside Syracuse – a move Schumer called “transformational.”

Days later, IBM announced its own plan to invest $20 billion in the Hudson Valley.

Corning CEO Wendell Weeks tells Spectrum News that he worked with Schumer to develop the pitch for these types of investments. “I help him explain to other of my colleagues from around the world why New York can be the right place for them,” he said.

Addressing Schumer's dual role, Weeks said Schumer is “suddenly a national figure working on issues and opportunities of global importance, but at the same time he's intensely focused on what's happening right here in New York State.”

Another of Schumer's priorities was building a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River.

The current tunnels are more than a century old and were damaged during Hurricane Sandy, making the new tube critical to the future of the New York, Northeast and U.S. economies.

The Trump administration was accused of delaying the long-awaited plan, but after Biden entered the White House, Schumer helped push through the bipartisan infrastructure bill, securing some of the last needed pieces of federal funding.

Assistant U.S. Transportation Secretary Polly Trottenberg, who once worked as Schumer's legislative director, said Schumer “always kept hope alive” on the tunnel project.

“There were so many near-death experiences for this project… (Schumer) continued to push it and push it forward. And then the stars finally aligned,” she said.

Over the past two decades, Schumer campaigned to keep the Buffalo Bills in Buffalo and worked to save the Binghamton Rumble Ponies minor league baseball team.

He helped secure $2.6 billion to build the world's first electron-ion accelerator at Brookhaven National Lab on Long Island. And he worked to adopt new limousine safety standards after the fatal limousine crash in Schoraharie in 2018.

In the face of tragedies, including the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and Superstorm Sandy, he helped steer federal aid to New York. And when the pandemic led to closures nationwide, he also successfully campaigned for aid for theaters and cultural centers.

The Corning Museum of Glass was one of the institutions that received support.

“It was instrumental in helping us survive until our visitation numbers returned to pre-COVID-19 numbers,” said Karol Wight, president of the museum.

What Schumer is particularly proud of is ending, at least temporarily, New York's status as a “donor state” that sends more tax revenue to Washington than it gets back in federal spending. This imbalance was a major disappointment to the late Senator Dan Patrick Moynihan.

Over the past three years, New York finally received more than it sent away thanks to federal COVID relief spending. But New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli warned that trend may not continue, especially as remaining pandemic-era aid dries up.

A photo of Schumer with cows. (Photo courtesy of Schumer's office)

Role in New York politics

Despite his intense focus on New York and his high status in Democratic circles, aides say Schumer has not taken on the role of power broker within the Democratic state apparatus.

While his predecessor, D'Amato, is credited with using his influence to make George Pataki the Republican nominee for governor, Schumer's focus was elsewhere.

“Being a party boss or trying to somehow control the machinations of a political party doesn't necessarily lend itself to the kind of relationships that are necessary when you have to build coalitions or bring home the bacon, or.” They have to be political Bringing results home,” said Mike Morey, a former consultant.

Ward Todd, a former Republican official in Ulster County, praises Schumer for his willingness to temporarily set aside the party to fulfill federal spending and projects.

“I really felt like he was our local representative, similar to our congressman. He was here so many times,” he said.

This is the second part of a three-part series on Senator Chuck Schumer as he celebrates his 25th year in the U.S. Senate. Part one, tracing the Brooklyn native's rise to Senate majority leader, can be found here. The third part, in which he evaluates his leadership style as Senate Majority Leader, can be found here.