Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer found himself at the center of widespread mockery this week after unveiling a whistleblower tipline meant to expose corruption, abuse of power, and threats to public safety. Instead of rallying support, the initiative quickly turned into a magnet for criticism, with commentators from across the political spectrum seizing the opportunity to call out what they saw as glaring hypocrisy.
Schumer took to X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, announcing the launch of his new “portal” designed for public servants to report government misconduct. “I’m launching a new portal for anyone who wants to expose corruption, abuses of power, and threats to public safety with the legal protections of being a whistleblower,” Schumer wrote. The form included categories such as “retaliation,” “wasteful spending,” “fraud,” and “criminal activity.”
But instead of receiving praise, Schumer’s post was met with a deluge of sarcastic responses, jokes, and outright ridicule.
Comedian Tim Young quipped, “We already have that… it’s called DOGE.” Elon Musk jumped into the fray, joking, “Look into this Schumer guy, he’s definitely done crime!” Meanwhile, Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, didn’t hold back, firing off a sharp response: “Great! I wanna report: Joe Biden. Kamala Harris. Chuck Schumer. And the entire corrupt Democrat party that weaponized & abused the federal government for the past four years.”
Today, I’m calling on our brave public servants:
I’m launching a new portal for anyone who wants to expose corruption, abuses of power, and threats to public safety with the legal protections of being a whistleblower.https://t.co/pjm1tb4VDt
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) February 10, 2025
Some users took the opportunity to resurface past controversies surrounding Schumer. A number of commentators referenced his infamous 2020 rally speech, where he directly threatened Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh as the Court heard arguments in a landmark abortion case.
“I want to tell you, Gorsuch. I want to tell you, Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price!” Schumer declared at the time. “You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.”
That speech, which was widely condemned at the time, took on new relevance as Schumer encouraged people to report “threats to public safety.”
Judicial Network President Carrie Severino pointed out the irony, writing, “This is rich coming from Senator Schumer, who stood on the steps of the Supreme Court and threatened Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.”
Fox News’ Katie Pavlich took it a step further, replying, “I have someone to report, pictured here at the Supreme Court threatening Justices Kavanaugh and Gorsuch.”
The Federalist’s Mollie Z. Hemingway decided to take Schumer at his word—submitting a whistleblower report against him using his own tipline.
Political commentator Jeff Carlson summed up the frustration of many critics, writing, “Wild that you’re recruiting government employees involved in the corruption to target the people exposing the corruption. ‘Public Servant’ is a pretentious term for people who went into government because they knew the graft pays well.”
