Democrats were staring down a moment of rare leverage, and they didn't hold the line. Moderates as usual caved. After November's strong electoral performance, the momentum is clearly with the Democratic Party. Yet here we are, with a government reopen with little to show for it.
For weeks, Democrats of stripes have made it clear: they won’t fund the government without guarantees that the health-insurance subsidies under the Affordable Care Act will be extended. Republicans and the Trump White House flatly rejected that, refusing to negotiate while the government remains shuttered. Democrat could have kept the government shut forcing the Trump Administration to the table. Now that the moderates have caved, what are Democrats getting for reopening? A promise for a meaningless vote. That’s laughable.
Recent elections delivered a message: voters believe Democrats must fight for something real. After wins in places like Virginia and New Jersey, the idea that the party should back down and reopen the government just to get back to business would betray that trust.
However, the reality is current Democrats caved and are weak, unprincipled and willing to settle for scraps and that’s exactly the victory the GOP wants them to snatch.
Democrats need to grow a spine. They need to use this moment of ascendancy to secure something tangible not open the government merely on a promise. They must demand commitments up front and hold firm until they get them. Otherwise, they will hand continue the narrative that Democrats don’t fight to protect the people, they just roll over. The stakes could not be higher, and the momentum could not be stronger. This is the moment to seize, not to collapse.
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