Here’s the reality: this shutdown could end with Trump cracking—or with McConnell simply overriding a Trump veto and re-passing the spending bill that previously sailed unanimously through the Senate and, in the next Congress, just passed the House.
Tons of GOP senators are up in 2020, incl
@SenJoniErnst @SenCoryGardner @SenatorCollins @SenThomTillis @sendavidperdue @SenMcSallyAZ—all of whom will lose if there’s a swing to D even close to as big as in 2018, giving Ds a majority even if Jones falls. & @senatemajldr is up too
@SenJoniErnst @SenCoryGardner @SenatorCollins @SenThomTillis @sendavidperdue @SenMcSallyAZ—all of whom will lose if there’s a swing to D even close to as big as in 2018, giving Ds a majority even if Jones falls. & @senatemajldr is up too
The conventional wisdom is that voters have short memories and that damage from shutdowns fades fast. But that won’t apply if this lasts for months. Nobody forgot health care repeal. This shutdown will cause more & more real pain. And the public knows who’s inflicting it on them.
This isn’t just a #TrumpShutdown. It’s a #MitchShutdown.
As the shutdown continues, GOP polling is going to take a nosedive. And it’s already pretty bad. But Mitch is in a bind, because if his GOP Senate overrides Trump, they’ll bleed support from their right flank as well. This is a disaster for him and his caucus.
The credible threat of a veto override from Mitch would result in Trump finding some path to reopen the government and declare victory. Because there’s nothing Trump fears more than humiliation. (Which leads him into confrontations where humiliation becomes inevitable.)
The only question, really, is how long Mitch is willing to let his caucus hang out to dry before he makes the call to Trump to get this thing over with. In the meantime, if you want an open government and/or don’t want a GOP Senate, it’s time to build pressure on GOP Senators.
If you’re furloughed and have a GOP senator, maybe use some free time to protest at your senators’ offices. Visit DC to protest them there. Make signs with your senators’ names and faces on them. Also worth doing if you’re not furloughed. Oh, and call them daily: 202-224-3121.
If you can’t get someone on the line in DC, call local offices. Find all their phone numbers at contactingcongress.org.
Another good way to reach your GOP senators to urge them to reopen the government: @resistbot. Check out resist.bot for more info.
If you have Dems in Congress, call and thank them for standing firm. This is crucial. If Dems capitulate on wall funding now, Trump will use shutdowns for hostage-taking at every opportunity going forward. Ds know this, which is part of why they’re doing the right thing.
Trump has a feral instinct for sensing points of weakness and then ripping them open. What he’s doing with the shutdown is a pure dominance play. To show he won’t be bossed by a woman. It can only be met through superior strength, or it will be repeated ad infinitum.
Pelosi will hold. For the rest of us, the key is to make this the hill that the GOP Senate caucus either flees or dies on. This is the #MitchShutdown. This is the #CollinsShutdown. This is the #GardnerShutdown. And these senators are serving their final, servile terms in office.
One last tactic suggestion: fund the eventual D Senate challengers.
Hill reporters: consider asking GOP senators if they agree with Trump’s plan to keep the government shut down for years.
