When President Donald Trump announced last week he wanted Congress to “pass a clean, temporary government funding Bill,” that should have dropped the chances of a federal shutdown to near zero.
After all, shutdown threats tend to get driven by conservative hard-liners intent on cutting spending — and who better than Trump to pull them in line and keep the government open?
So it’s quite a testament to how dramatically Trump has shaken up Washington over the past six weeks that the likelihood of a shutdown hasn’t abated. In fact, according to my reporting, it might actually have increased.
This time, it’s Democrats who are itching for a fight — over the Department of Government Efficiency cuts that Trump has blessed and deputized mogul Elon Musk has gleefully carried out.
I fucking dare them to. The monicker “Do Nothing Democrats” turned out to be true. The last six weeks have been the worst five years of our lives.
Name one meaningful thing they could have done as the minority in both chambers of Congress besides raise awareness and hope the voters do better in 2026. I’ll wait.
They should be acting like the republicans normally do. They have signed off on his cabinet picks. They are literally the same thing.
They could have not voted for his nominees and fought every single one with mountains of procedural bullshit.
They could have charged the treasury building instead of standing politely outside.
They could have do what the republicans did to them. Half of it even.
When DOGE infiltrated the Department of Education, several Democratic congresspeople, with media circus in tow, went to the DoE building but were stopped by a single skinny man, with no uniform, who produced no ID, and claimed to be security hired by Musk. A toddler could have pushed past him. Instead, they gave up and left.
Some Republicans have been having meetings with constituents. Why not crash the meetings? Ask hard questions. Make the republicans answer or show them running like cowards.
The left is desperate for new blood and new leadership. So, after the election, the DNC circled the wagons, and gave us… Hakeem Jeffries. Picking leadership that actually inspires people, instead of putting the same bland ghouls up on a pedestal, might actually get people to pay attention. Instead it feels like they have no plan other than to wait out the storm and turning to the same old playbook that’s made them lose to Trump. Twice.
Last night, Al Green was the only representative that spoke out during the speech. The rest of the Democrats either stood silently, or held tiny signs like Wile E. Coyote in the most pathetic, childish, display of resistance I’ve ever seen. Imagine instead if there was a string of constant interruptions as they all walked out, one by one.
So yes, there is actually quite a lot they could do besides “raise awareness and hope voters do better in 2026.” Saying there’s nothing they can do is serving bullshit and claiming it’s sirloin. Trump has signaled that the rules of law do not apply, so maybe start bending or breaking those rules? They have left it up to the people to protest. I haven’t seen a single member of the DNC calling for action. Why should the left be motivated to protest if our leaders won’t even acknowledge us, let alone stand with us?
This seems like such an easy thing to get by. Get a random to walk up next to the other “guard” and say “yes we both got hired by Musk, but I just got word we can let you in.”
Oh what do you mean that other guy isn’t a real ‘guard’? You both have the same credentials. Matter of fact the second guard could claim the first one got fired and to ignore them.
Here’s a whole list
https://indivisible.org/resource/explainer-how-senate-democrats-can-delay-defy-trumps-agenda-procedural-hardball
Some stuff from your link
They can pass that budget without Democrats. They’re going to use Reconciliation like the Democrats did under Biden. So this one is moot. Also in this point they talk about how the Democrats just have to refuse to vote for a bill that cuts the social programs. Which they have. So both moot and already done.
What? The Republicans have 53 senators. As long as each one is there they can still do whatever they want. This one just doesn’t make sense.
This one is actually dead on and something that should happen.
So basically the article you linked has 3 ways the Democrats can fight back. The first way is something they’re already doing, refusing to vote for a budget that cuts programs. But also the point is moot because it says they need Democrats to pass the MAGA budget but they don’t. So that point doesn’t work. The second is also moot because the Republicans have 53 senators and will be able to do stuff if the Democrats are there or not. And the third is actually an option they can do.
So your article has 1 possible action while acting as if the Democrats aren’t already doing another one of these. The article is saying they will gladly vote for a budget that cuts the programs despite the Democrats saying they won’t.
They could have all been thrown out for protesting his speech. They could have thrown literal rotten tomatoes at him. FUCKING ANYTHING would be better than this shit.
In Europe they would have thrown shoes at him. You can go through all the metal detectors in the world, but you’ll still have 2 shoes. Just sayin.
That’s all meaningless theater.
Politics is largely just theater given substance - it’s a rhetorical pursuit.
What makes a theater performance meaningless is when the audience doesn’t appreciate what is being said.