Democrats said President Trump will be under pressure Tuesday to prove he can actually forge bipartisanship in Washington, after a year in which they said he tacked to the right, shunning opportunities they gave him to work across party lines.
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer said that from judicial picks to health care to the tax-cut bill, Mr. Trump has tilted to the right — and for the most part hasn’t even sought Democrats’ input.
“The reason that these don’t get Democratic votes is President Trump and his administration don’t talk to us. They don’t ask us what we might suggest. They don’t try to create a bipartisan meld,” Mr. Schumer said. “They just act in a narrow, partisan way and the American people know it.”
The New York Democrat said he expected Mr. Trump to call for bipartisanship, but the senator said the president must back that up.
Mr. Schumer recalled his time under previous presidents dating back to former President Ronald Reagan and declared Mr. Trump’s “one of the most partisan administrations many of us have ever worked with.”
He also said Mr. Trump should give credit to others for the surging stock market and other strong economic indicators.
“The truth is, these trends were present before Donald Trump took office. President Trump was handed an already healthy economy by his predecessor. Like many things in his life, he inherited it,” Mr. Schumer said.
“Here are two words we won’t hear President Trump say tonight about the economy: Thanks, Obama.”
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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