Why are Senate Democrats unanimously supporting a government shutdown in order to benefit illegal immigrants (to state the issue most unfavorably to them)? The “Schumer Shutdown,” as President Trump calls it, came even though many Senate Democrats were on record opposing a shutdown over legalizing Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients, even though they declined to vote for one on the last go-round, even though they are on record from the 2013 shutdown as opposing shutdowns over extraneous issues. It’s true that public opinion has moved away from Republicans in previous shutdowns: shutting down the government is generally unpopular, and Republicans tend to get blamed because (a) mainstream media always blames Republicans and (b) Republicans are the small government party. But there’s at least some polling showing Democrats getting hurt in the current circumstances, and yet every Senate Democrat went ahead and supported the shutdown anyway. What glue holds them together?
My answer, delving back into what is now history, is the 1986 off-year Senate elections. Going into that election, Republicans held a 53-47 majority in the Senate. President Ronald Reagan had job approval around 60 percent (it fell to just under 50 percent shortly after the election when the Iran-contra scandal unfolded). In the off-year election, the partisan balance changed little in House elections: the Democrats went in with a 253-182 majority and came out with a slightly larger 258-177 majority.
