Morning-after shutdown thoughts

An editorial at the Washington Examiner rightly frames the situation as Democrats insisting on a little semantical bending (an authorization of something longer term rather than sticking to appropriations solely related to the immediate matter at hand), getting that and then insisting on an even less related add-on. In other words, give those Dems an inch and they take a mile:

Democrats wanted the continuing resolution to include a policy rider reauthorizing the Children’s Health Insurance Plan for six more years. But that isn’t an appropriations measure; it’s a six-year authorization. Even so, Republicans have agreed to this add-on.

But for Democrats, even that stretch isn't enough. They also want to pass an immigration reform law as part of this spending bill. Specifically, they demand permanent acceptance of illegal immigrants who entered the country as children and have not committed felonies. This would make former President Barack Obama’s temporary DACA policy permanent.

Republicans want DACA reform, which is an immigration policy, to be included in an actual immigration deal.

So, Democrats are demanding a non-germane policy provision, and won’t vote to keep the government open unless they get it. It seems reasonable that the side demanding non-germane riders on a spending bill to keep the government running, and blocking an up-or-down vote on it, are the ones shutting down the government.

In fairness, the Very Stable Genius is also culpable:

Trump, a year in, still lacks mouth control. He keeps blowing himself up. He still lacks the ability to engage meaningfully in debate on policy. But without it, he cannot cut deals that make sense, or keep them once they are agreed.

Neil Stevens at Red State says a hefty does of Reasonable Gentleman Syndrome is a major factor:

Mitch McConnell doesn’t want to beat the Democrats very much. As we’ve seen with issues like amnesty, Republican and Democrat leaders don’t disagree on very much. They all want DACA amnesty. They all want CHIP. They all want Obamacare. But they want to go through the motions in a way that lets them look like they’re fighting, so their voters will continue to turn out for them.

Just as McConnell caved on Obamacare, he wants to cave to the Democrats on other issues. So, he lets the filibuster threat win out. Weak, weak, weak. And honest, hard-working government contractors suffer the consequences, as they no longer get paid. Unionized government employees will be fine, but the contractors lose out big time.

Man, that's a cold splash of water right there.

And while the Beltway mush-hearted types reach across aisles and make a mockery of the whole notion of having principles, the nation's debt, as John Hawkins points out in his Townhall column today, looms as relentlessly as ever:

America is more than 20 trillion dollars in debt and this year is on pace to add more than 400 billion dollars to that number. Our debt, which we have no intention of ever fully paying, is now the equivalent of about 25% of the world’s GDP. That number is massive; the CBO estimates that by 2040, 58% of all our spending will be nothing but interest payments on the debt. How much are we going to be able to spend on our military then? If you think our infrastructure is bad now, what do you think it will look like then? What happens when we have large, unexpected expenses, like another 9/11? Our debt is just as big a threat to our future as the Brits and Axis once were.

So a shutdown that's probably not going to last very long consumes all the oxygen in the room, and post-America's sitting-duck status resulting from profligacy and the willful distortion of Mr. Madison's vision of what a federal government is for still gets swept under the rug. A discussion requiring that level of maturity and understanding of ordered liberty and limited government is just too uncomfortable.