The phrase “government shutdown” might sound dramatic, or even terrifying. But in the past, it has usually appeared in the form of hyperbolic soundbites from politicians and an outraged media looking on in despair. But in reality, outside of the Washington, D.C. bubble, it’s often too easy for most Americans to miss that a government shutdown is even happening. After all, the government was shut down from early October to mid-November last year, the longest shutdown in history, and America hardly seemed to notice.
Then there’s the realm of “partial shutdowns” as Congress nitpicks over funding certain policies or departments. The latest example is the descent of Congress into a state of paralysis over the Department of Homeland Security. This “partial shutdown” has lasted for more than five weeks, with ICE supposedly forming an impassable roadblock. But with ICE essentially funded through the One Big Beautiful Bill, a different throbbing symptom has caught the eye of the public: the descent of several major American airports into chaos as security agents — employed by the unfunded TSA — grow scarce.
Yes, during a war with Iran — the world’s foremost sponsor of Islamic terrorism — Congress is actually refusing to fund those charged with protecting against acts of Islamic terrorism.
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If this weren’t ridiculous enough, there’s another layer here that makes this move by the Democrats even more puzzling. The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act) is a policy priority of President Donald Trump, and, therefore, the entire GOP would enforce the overwhelmingly popular requirement that voters provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote.
And with the SAVE Act thrown into the mix of shutdown negotiations, Democrats have gone mad, labeling it as yet another version of “Jim Crow 2.0” under Trump. Meanwhile, Republicans have also gone mad, fighting amongst themselves over how to deliver the SAVE Act to Trump’s desk at any cost, and why each possible method only hands the Democrats further advantage.
Democrats and Republicans keep playing their fruitless, cynical, and cyclic games, and Democrats and Republicans keep betraying their duty to their constituents, even putting American citizens in danger during an ongoing war with a dangerous (and desperate) enemy.
What’s even more infuriating is that, in a sensible world, both parties could be playing this to their advantage and the advantage of the American people. Republicans could put the SAVE Act on the back burner and force Democrats to own this shutdown, including the chaos at airports across the country. This would either force Democrats to end the shutdown or provide hours in gold-plated attack advertisements against the Democrats for the midterm elections.
On the other hand, Democrats could agree to necessary funding (and even the SAVE Act), thereby delivering security to the American people and putting the focus back on Trump, the economy, and war with Iran. Then, all they have to do is wait a few months before they take back the House of Representatives and perhaps even the Senate, before setting their sights on reclaiming the White House in 2028.
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Republicans are focusing on the wrong fights, and Democrats would rather fight than patiently wait for their moment to arrive. At this point, we have elected nothing more than a crowd of squabbling children who would rather bicker among themselves than deliver for the American people.
We deserve better.
Ian Haworth is a syndicated columnist. You can find his work on Substack.
