For Democrats, the odds were stacked against them from the start when it came to winning a shutdown fight with the GOP. The party's ultimate goal of extending expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies seemed like a distant dream, given the lack of progress in negotiations.
It was clear that Trump and the Republicans had no intention of caving to Democrats' demands. Instead, they used the shutdown as an opportunity to pressure Senate Republicans into abolishing the filibuster - essentially removing the tool that Democrats used to bring the government to a standstill. With the pressure intensifying as the shutdown dragged on, many in the Democratic caucus began to fear the consequences of losing the filibuster.
At the same time, ordinary Americans were starting to feel the pain of the prolonged shutdown. Federal workers had already been going without pay for months, and the impact was about to become even more severe with the loss of SNAP benefits and a looming air travel disaster due to FAA cuts.
It was under these circumstances that many Democrats decided to cut a deal, despite knowing it would be seen as a humiliating cave by their base. The reality is that Democrats never had a plausible strategy to achieve their goals in this fight. They needed to find a way to balance pleasing their enthusiastic but sometimes unrealistic supporters with the harsh realities of dealing with an uncooperative GOP.
The ultimatum strategy, which involved not supporting government funding until certain demands were met, was always a poor idea for Democrats. It was a recipe for a highly polarized fight that would likely end in defeat for the minority party. And it's clear now that Trump and the Republicans never had any intention of giving in to their demands.
In the end, it came down to a simple choice: cave or risk losing everything. The fact that many Democrats chose the former option says more about the limitations of their strategy than the bravery of their politicians.
It was clear that Trump and the Republicans had no intention of caving to Democrats' demands. Instead, they used the shutdown as an opportunity to pressure Senate Republicans into abolishing the filibuster - essentially removing the tool that Democrats used to bring the government to a standstill. With the pressure intensifying as the shutdown dragged on, many in the Democratic caucus began to fear the consequences of losing the filibuster.
At the same time, ordinary Americans were starting to feel the pain of the prolonged shutdown. Federal workers had already been going without pay for months, and the impact was about to become even more severe with the loss of SNAP benefits and a looming air travel disaster due to FAA cuts.
It was under these circumstances that many Democrats decided to cut a deal, despite knowing it would be seen as a humiliating cave by their base. The reality is that Democrats never had a plausible strategy to achieve their goals in this fight. They needed to find a way to balance pleasing their enthusiastic but sometimes unrealistic supporters with the harsh realities of dealing with an uncooperative GOP.
The ultimatum strategy, which involved not supporting government funding until certain demands were met, was always a poor idea for Democrats. It was a recipe for a highly polarized fight that would likely end in defeat for the minority party. And it's clear now that Trump and the Republicans never had any intention of giving in to their demands.
In the end, it came down to a simple choice: cave or risk losing everything. The fact that many Democrats chose the former option says more about the limitations of their strategy than the bravery of their politicians.
. I mean, it's no secret that the GOP is super against those ACA subsidies, but come on! You'd think they'd want to keep healthcare for all Americans, especially when it comes down to a partisan fight. 
. But seriously, folks, can we talk about how frustrating it must be for the average Joe who's been affected by this shutdown? Federal workers going unpaid for months? SNAP benefits getting cut off? It's just cruel 
.
. They kept throwing around ultimatums and expecting the GOP to cave, but Trump and the Reps were always one step ahead 
. In the end, it was a classic case of "give in or lose everything" 
.
. So let's not forget that! But seriously, we need to have better strategies for dealing with our opponents and finding common ground 
.
And what's up with the Republicans trying to abolish the filibuster? Like, isn't that the whole point of having a Senate in the first place? 
#ShutDownFightingIsSoLastSeason
#AffordableCareActForAll
. And what about all the air travel disasters because of FAA cuts? Like, is that really something to politicize? 
. Maybe it was time to negotiate from a place of strength instead of weakness? IDK, maybe I'm just being too optimistic 
#LessonLearned
. I mean, come on, how hard can it be to negotiate with someone? 
. And poor federal workers who have been waiting for months without pay... 
. It's just heartbreaking to see people suffer because of politics 
.
and I feel bad for those fed workers who have been going without pay for months 
... SNAP benefits are a huge deal too, like what's gonna happen to people who need food? 
interesting how the GOP used the filibuster as leverage though, that's some sneaky stuff 
. And don't even get me started on the ordinary Americans getting hit with all this 
And let's be real, who wants to risk losing everything? Not me 
. Now let's hope they can bounce back stronger and more united in their next move 
! 
It's like they were all "Hey, let's make things worse and have our faces burn off"! 
And don't even get me started on how Trump and the GOP manipulated Senate Republicans into ditching the filibuster... That's some serious underhanded stuff right there. 
And when you see those politicians all smiling and happy, like they just won some kind of award... it makes me wanna scream. 
The thing is, I don't think the Democrats had a viable strategy to begin with. They needed to find a way to balance pleasing their base with reality. 
. ANYWAY, I GUESS THIS DEAL IS JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF HOW HARD IT IS FOR DEMOCRATS TO GET THINGS DONE IN DC 
I'm so sick of these forums where people just rehash the same old talking points over and over again... 