Granted, Trump’s chief opposition on Capitol Hill came from Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY). Democrats can’t stand Schumer, and Jeffries is basically Temu Obama. It’s not as if Trump and the GOP had to break a sweat dismantling their talking points and outmaneuvering them as the shutdown dragged on.
For more than 40 days, Trump held firm against Democrats and their media allies, who demanded the White House cave on illegal-alien health care, NPR funding, and a grab bag of other nonsense. In the end, the deal Democrats accepted to reopen the government was essentially the same offer Republicans put on the table at the start.
The GOP stayed united. Trump didn’t blink. Democrats did. Two words describe Trump after this fight: BIG WINNER:
The collapse of Chuck Schumer’s shutdown gambit, when seven fellow Democrats and one independent broke ranks with him, serves as a humiliating bookend to the longest government closure ever.
It also simultaneously highlights one of President Trump’s most sweeping and crucial Washington victories over his most toxic opponents.
In the end, the only concession Republicans made was a promise to hold a vote next month on the issue, which is relatively worthless because nobody believes the vote is likely to lead to any changes in the status quo.
The lack of any concrete result explains why so many Dems and their media megaphones are spitting mad at the outcome and are calling for Schumer’s head.
He was the chief proponent of the shutdown, and got next to nothing except a major black eye for himself and his party.
His calculations were so off the mark that even much of the media didn’t play along this time because it was so obvious that Dems were fixated only on rescuing Obamacare and that Republicans were determined to say no.
Even in Washington, blaming the GOP for refusing to fund something it said it was never going to fund had zero logic or persuasive power.
For Schumer, the death knell of the flawed strategy came when he was unable to hold his caucus together any longer.
In fact, extending the shutdown, given GOP unity, would have been colossally dumb.
The 42-day closure was the longest ever, and caused enormous strain and pain for tens of millions of Americans.
Over 1 million government workers were furloughed without pay, food benefits were delayed for needy families and chaos swamped airports across the nation because of a shortage of air traffic controllers.
And what about SNAP benefits? Sure, that talking point picked up some steam — but it collapses under even the slightest scrutiny. Republicans offered to fund SNAP 15 separate times during the standoff, and Democrats rejected every single one. They’re literally on tape admitting that causing pain for ordinary Americans was a “bargaining chip” they were perfectly willing to use. They liked the leverage. Hopefully someone at the RNC is already stitching together a greatest-hits montage, because Democrats handed them all the material they’ll ever need. For the record: SNAP is funded through September 2026.
Just like in March, Democrats came into this fight with no plan, no message, and no real leader — the three things you absolutely need in a political brawl like this. Schumer tried twice to manufacture a spending fight and got flattened both times. Trump won. Schumer may well lose his job over it.
And even on the House side, it’s not a sure thing that Democrats will even rally behind Jeffries next session. They’re stuck with two weak leaders, both bad messengers, both bordering on lame-duck status — and these were the geniuses running their shutdown strategy.
No wonder they lost. But their loss is a huge victory for our president and, frankly, for the entire country.
