03.07.25

Democrats’ Ongoing Identity Crisis Includes Deep Division Over Shutdown Threats

Democrats Neglected Last Year’s Appropriations Bills and Are Now Threatening a Government Shutdown

“If there is a shutdown, it will be driven by and directed by the Democrats.” – Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.)

“If the Democrats here in the Senate do not join us as Republicans to pass something along that nature, they will be shutting down the government. We know that’s a road to nowhere, a disservice to every American… We should have dealt with this last year, but Senator Schumer did not even pick up one of our appropriations bills that we passed last year.” – Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)

ONE WEEK FROM TODAY, GOVERNMENT FUNDING RUNS OUT – AND DEMOCRATS SEEM INTENT ON DRAGGING THE COUNTRY TOWARD A SHUTDOWN

  • “Republicans are pressing on with plans for a clean six-month stopgap to keep the government funded beyond next week’s shutdown deadline in the face of staunch resistance from Democrats.” (The Hill: GOP plows forward with government funding plan despite Democratic opposition – 3/5/25)
  • “[I]t’s Democrats who are itching for a fight…” (Politico: Democrats Are Serious About a Shutdown – 3/4/25)
  • “Democrats appear emboldened at a moment in which they have few other options to stand up to the Trump administration’s efforts to shrink government…” (CNN: Democrats reject GOP funding strategy, stoking shutdown fears – 3/4/25)
  • “The issue presents a dilemma for Democratic leaders… GOP leadership is all but daring Democrats to oppose [the clean CR] — at risk of being blamed for a shutdown.” (The Hill: Democrats digging in against full-year CR as shutdown deadline ticks closer – 3/5/25)
  • “[House Democrat Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ (D-N.Y.)] leadership team is gauging whether his members are willing to take this fight all the way.” (Politico: Democrats Are Serious About a Shutdown – 3/4/25)

DEMOCRATS ARE DEEP IN DISARRAY: PARTY LEADERS SIGNAL OPENNESS TO A SHUTDOWN WHILE OTHER DEMOCRATS AREN’T SO SURE

  • “Sen. Dick Durbin, the chamber’s No. 2 Democrat, told our colleague Jordain Carney on Thursday that he didn’t believe enough of his members were willing to support a full-year stopgap bill to get it through the Senate.” (Politico Inside Congress: Will Senate Dems help stop a shutdown? – 3/7/25)
  • “Usually shutdown saber-rattling originates on the fringes of the two parties and gains momentum until leaders just can’t ignore it, lest they risk their own jobs. This time, however, the foment is coming from the leadership table itself…” (Politico: Democrats Are Serious About a Shutdown – 3/4/25)
  • Senate Democrat leadership “circulated a memo outlining the argument against a full-year stopgap,” which was seen as “a key signal that Democrats are preparing their members to dig in on the fight.” (CNN: Democrats reject GOP funding strategy, stoking shutdown fears – 3/4/25)
  • “[M]any Democrats are insisting that they are not afraid of political ramifications,” even though a shutdown would make life “worse for federal workers…” (CNN: Democrats reject GOP funding strategy, stoking shutdown fears – 3/4/25; Axios: Democrats grasp to avoid government shutdown – 2/27/25)
  • Democrat leaders may be losing the confidence of their rank-and-file members: While Democrat leadership is open to a shutdown, other Democrats are beginning to acknowledge that “appearing to want a shutdown is bad politics for Democrats:” (Axios: Democrats grasp to avoid government shutdown – 2/27/25)
    • Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.): “… for a state like ours, a shutdown is even worse.”
    • Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.): “I will never vote for or withhold my vote to shut the government down. That’s chaos and I’ll never vote for chaos.”
    • “Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), a Senate Appropriations Committee member, also expressed an openness to a long-term CR.” (Punchbowl News AM: The Golden Age of Pettiness – 3/5/25)

FLASHBACK FRIDAY: WHILE IN THE MAJORITY LAST YEAR, DEMOCRAT LEADER SCHUMER IGNORED 11 BIPARTISAN APPROPRIATIONS BILLS, OPTING INSTEAD TO WASTE TIME ON PARTISAN SHOW VOTES

“Eleven of the 12 [appropriations bills] were reported out of the Appropriations Committee last summer, available for floor consideration. We could have had them on the floor, but like everything else, that's languished.” – Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), 12/10/24

  • “Congress drops the ball on annual spending bills — again.” (Punchbowl News AM: The appropriations mess rolls on – 7/31/24)
  • “The Senate Appropriations Committee will have approved 11 of the 12 funding bills… But none of these bills have been to the floor yet.” (Punchbowl News AM: The appropriations mess rolls on – 7/31/24)
  • “[I]t means that all 100 senators don’t have a chance to shape the final product. That can only be done on the floor.” (Punchbowl News AM: The appropriations mess rolls on – 7/31/24)
  • Instead of bringing up appropriations bills for a vote, “Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer [embraced] the art of the ‘show vote’…” (Punchbowl News AM: Are House Republicans setting themselves up to fail? – 6/5/24)
  • Neglecting basic governance, Schumer’s entire focus was on “doing everything he can to protect his most vulnerable incumbents.” (Punchbowl News AM: The summer 2024 Leader Look – 5/24/24)
  • “Schumer confirmed that a major motivation for holding the vote was the plight of his most vulnerable incumbents, regardless of the outcome… ‘They’d rather win, we’d all rather win. But even losing is a benefit.’” (Punchbowl News Midday – 7/31/24)