During the Obama administration, there were three times that government shutdowns were threatened or happened because Congress wouldn't take action to fund the government. The issue was either restraining government spending or taking action to prevent the disaster of Obamacare. Each time that these events happened, the Democrats called the Republicans responsible for the shutdown names like "terrorists" or "pirates". The idea of shutting the government was reprehensible to the Democrats, or so they said. Well now things have flipped. Democrats in the senate are threatening to shut down the government in order to block appropriation of money for a border wall as promised by President Trump.
It's actually funny to see this. To be fair, hypocrisy in Washington is like sunrise in the morning: we all know it is coming but it is still a sight to behold. Still, the Democrats are actually setting the stage for their full defeat in the years ahead if they take this move.
It's important to remember that in the event there are no appropriations measures that pass Congress, the president gets to decide which portions of the government are "essential" and then to fund those. If the Democrats cut off all funds for the government, President Trump can just fund Defense and Homeland Security along with whatever else he wants. Funding Homeland Security means he funds the wall. The Democrats could just be cutting off funding for things like public broadcasting, national parks, and programs for the poor. The choice would belong to Trump.
Somehow, I don't think that is what the Democrats have in mind.
It's actually funny to see this. To be fair, hypocrisy in Washington is like sunrise in the morning: we all know it is coming but it is still a sight to behold. Still, the Democrats are actually setting the stage for their full defeat in the years ahead if they take this move.
It's important to remember that in the event there are no appropriations measures that pass Congress, the president gets to decide which portions of the government are "essential" and then to fund those. If the Democrats cut off all funds for the government, President Trump can just fund Defense and Homeland Security along with whatever else he wants. Funding Homeland Security means he funds the wall. The Democrats could just be cutting off funding for things like public broadcasting, national parks, and programs for the poor. The choice would belong to Trump.
Somehow, I don't think that is what the Democrats have in mind.
No comments:
Post a Comment