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WASHINGTON — Sen. Chuck Schumer can’t spin his way out of this gaffe.
The media-hungry liberal leader yesterday accidentally revealed the inner workings of the Democratic Party’s “extreme” p.r. machine — hurting budget negotiations as both parties brace for an April 8 government shutdown.
Just before a conference call with reporters, Schumer (D-NY) was heard on the line giving his Democratic colleagues marching orders to spin the budget-battle story.
“I always use the word ‘extreme.’ That is what the caucus instructed me to use this week,” the spin-master said in an effort to color Tea Party lawmakers — apparently unaware reporters were already listening in on the call.
Schumer told the four senators preparing for the call to say House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) refuses to compromise on the budget because he’s cowed by extreme Tea Party members.
“The main thrust is basically that we want to negotiate and we want to come up with a compromise but the Tea Party is pulling Boehner too far over to the right,” Schumer instructed.
“The only way we can avoid a shutdown is for Boehner to come up with a reasonable compromise and not just listen to what the Tea Party wants.”
After apparently realizing his mistake, Schumer fell silent.
The conference call then got under way as if nothing had happened.
The four Democrats on the call — Sens. Barbara Boxer (Calif.), Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), Ben Cardin (Md.) and Tom Carper (Del.) — dutifully followed Schumer’s orders, using the word “extreme” at least a dozen times to blast Boehner and the Tea Party.
Schumer spokesman Brian Fallon later made light of the slip-up.
“There’s nothing wrong with reporters overhearing him calling the House Republicans extreme because that’s what [they are],” Fallon said.
Schumer, who runs the communications war room for the Senate Democratic leadership, has been hammering home the “extreme” message for days.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Schumer’s spin instructions were hurting negotiations.
“That’s really not helpful, if we’re trying to reach an agreement here,” he told reporters.
House Republicans and President Obama’s Senate Democrats have until April 8 to strike a spending deal and avoid a government shutdown.
The two sides remain at least $30 billion apart.
The White House has offered $20 billion in cuts — but the GOP wants to slash $50 billion from the rest of the budget year, which ends on Sept. 30.
The government is currently running on a stopgap spending measure that expires on April 8.