Chuck Schumer’s enemies can’t resist cursing him out in Yiddish

He was elected after being called a ‘putzhead.’ Now the head of the Jewish GOP is calling him a schmuck

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

By Beth Harpaz September 5, 2024

Chuck Schumer’s enemies just can’t resist cursing him out in Yiddish.

On Thursday, Norm Coleman, the national chairman of the Republican Jewish Coalition, referred to Schumer as “Chuck Schmuck.”

The term is commonly used to insult someone as a jerk, but its literal meaning — a reference to male genitalia — is considered so vulgar in certain circles that some Yiddish purists deem it unprintable.

Coleman’s use of the word recalled a moment 26 years ago when another vulgar Yiddishism — “putzhead” — was used by a prominent Republican against Schumer. The comment made national headlines and helped Schumer win his seat in the U.S. Senate.

Schumer, a Democrat from New York, is now the Senate majority leader and the highest-ranking Jewish elected official in U.S. history. His office did not immediately respond to an email sent Thursday requesting comment.

The Schumer-D’Amato race

The earlier Yiddish controversy unfolded in 1998. Schumer was a congressman from Brooklyn seeking to unseat Sen. Alfonse D’Amato, a three-term incumbent from Long Island, when D’Amato called Schumer a “putzhead” in a private meeting. D’Amato initially denied using the term, but word got out, and the controversy made headlines for days leading up to the election.

D’Amato — nicknamed “Senator Pothole” for his legendary attention to constituent needs — was vulnerable on other issues, but his use of the Yiddish slur was deemed beneath the dignity of a U.S. senator, and his denying having said it helped nail his defeat.

Schumer ended up trouncing D’Amato 54-44 in the election.

Both “putz” and “schmuck” are vulgar Yiddish slang for penis, but both have more generic uses — “putz” to refer to a bumbling fool, and “schmuck” to an all-around jerk.

Beth Harpaz is a reporter at the Forward. She previously covered politics and breaking news for The Associated Press and has written three nonfiction books.

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