Senator Chuck Schumer's statement that he would oppose the Iran nuclear agreement may cost him his chance to become Democratic leader in the Senate if far-left activist groups have anything to say about it.

Schumer's statement that he would not support President Obama has caused an explosion of vitriol directed against the New York senator – criticism that left-wing extremists usually reserve for conservatives.

The Hill:

Activists and former top officials within the Obama administration are openly contemplating whether Schumer’s stance disqualifies him from serving as the next Senate Democratic leader — which he is primed to do — and seeking to temporarily cut off money to Democrats in the upper chamber. 

It’s unclear whether Schumer’s announcement will have a devastating effect on the White House’s efforts to prevent Democrats from killing the deal when it comes up for a vote in Congress next month. 

But it’s clear that he will be Public Enemy No. 1 for liberal activists throughout the August recess, as they aim to rally support from Democrats on the agreement.           

“This is a real and serious backlash, one that comes from deep within the Democratic Party’s base, and I think we’re only going to see it grow,” said Becky Bond, the political director for Credo Action. 

Liberal groups including Credo, MoveOn.org and Democracy for America are rallying supporters to flood congressional mailboxes and town halls over the course of the next month to demand lawmakers support the agreement. On Friday, they launched a new website, 60DaysToStopAWar.com, to list upcoming town halls and aid in the push. 

Late on Thursday evening, Schumer upended the congressional debate over the Iran agreement by announcing in a lengthy statement that he “must oppose the agreement” and “will vote yes on a motion of disapproval” when it comes up for a vote in September. 

He also will vote to override President Obama’s veto of legislation to kill the deal, Schumer’s office confirmed. 

The move puts Schumer at odds on the most significant foreign policy issue of the year with both Obama and Hillary Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination. 

That left many liberals furious, and stunned at how the presumptive next Senate Democratic leader could break with virtually every other leader of their party. 

Even though the No. 3 Senate Democrat released his statement in the middle of the first GOP presidential debate — practically ensuring it would be buried in the media — activist groups including MoveOn and Credo pounced within moments.  

“No real Democratic leader does this,” MoveOn.org political action executive director Ilya Sheyman declared less than 30 minutes after Schumer’s statement was posted online. “If this is what counts as ‘leadership’ among Democrats in the Senate, Senate Democrats should be prepared to find a new leader or few followers.”  

"#60daystostopawar"?  What a monumental exaggeration.  But that's what liberals do – exaggerate, denigrate, and obfuscate.  With a majority of Americans opposing the deal, Schumer's position is right smack-dab in the mainstream.  It is the far left of the Democratic Party taking the extremist position that anyone who opposes the deal wants war with Iran.

Schumer didn't mention it in his statement, but we've come a long way from a decade-long U.S. policy of not talking with Iran until they suspended uranium enrichment to actually encouraging them to enrich as much uranium as their whirring centrifuges can handle.  And a good argument can be made that blowing up the deal and preventing Iran from enjoying a $150-billion windfall when sanctions are lifted will do more to prevent conflict in the Middle East than all the charges of "warmongering" coming from leftist extremists.