Chuck Schumer: What to know about Senate minority leader from New York
There's a lot you may not know about Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
The 66-year-old Brooklyn-born senator from New York entered politics after graduating from Harvard College and Harvard Law School. He was elected to the New York State Assembly before winning a seat in the 9th Congressional District in 1980 — at the young age of 29.
Schumer grew up in Sheepshead Bay and attended Madison High School. He has two daughters, Jessica and Alison, and he still lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Iris Weinshal.
Here are six things that may surprise you about Schumer.
The Sunday news conference? That's a Schumer classic
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Schumer basically invented the Sunday news conference, notorious for occasionally obscure issues -- often tied to a larger problem -- that he presents on what is often the slowest news day of the week. The Observer reported that the strategy has been adopted by other politicians.
He loves the media
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According to Business Insider, President Barack Obama once joked that Schumer brought his "loved ones" to an event, referring to "the folks with the cameras and the notebooks in the back of the room."
He lived in an 'Animal House' of sorts
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It's not always luxury living for the senator from New York. For decades, Schumer hunkered down in a frat-style home with other Democratic senators while visiting the nation's capital.
Some features: peeling paint, sheets for curtains and a pile of underwear in the living room, all featured in this CNN profile.
The living arrangement, which began in the early '80s, was the inspiration for a 2013 Amazon show, "Alpha House." In that show the senators are Republicans.
He may not make his bed
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Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois once joked that Schumer didn't bother to make his bed when the pair lived together in D.C. The problem: The bed was in the living room, and Durbin said he and his wife once walked in on Schumer in his boxers.
He's a biker at heart
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Schumer credits his long Saturday bike rides with giving him insight into the city. He started the tradition more than a decade ago when he injured his knee and couldn't play basketball anymore, according to the Daily News.
He even takes calls regularly, talking to former-Senate minority leader Harry Reid while riding with the Daily News reporter in Bedford-Stuyvesant. He didn't break his stride, but assured the reporter that when the president calls, he stops.
He has eclectic taste in music
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Schumer listens to everything from the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, to Kelly Clarkson and Beyoncé on his weekly bike rides, according to the Daily News.