Despite backing down and voting to reopen the government without major policy wins, several Senate Democrats are unabashedly declaring the ordeal “worth it.”
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) told reporters, “Yes, I think so. I hate it, but yeah, it was worth it. Definitely.” Asked what “it” actually achieved, he said: “We opened the national spotlight, the people saw how strongly we stood for … something.”
Meanwhile, the agency website for federal workers included images of empty desks and “Sorry for the inconvenience” signs, enabling savvy Democrats to conclude that the “pain of government suspension” is itself a statement. “If you feel it, you care about it,” one aide explained.
The fracas began when eight Senate Democrats broke ranks and voted with Republicans to end the chaos — without securing the Affordable Care Act subsidy extension they had demanded.
At a private caucus meeting afterwards, a senator reportedly asked: “Did we win?” Another replied: “Not exactly. But at least we didn’t lose the optics.”
On the street, furloughed workers and families relying on SNAP benefits (cut off mid-month) expressed less enthusiasm. “Worth it? My mortgage doesn’t know this was a highlight reel,” said Jessica Sweet, a federal claims specialist.
Party strategists now point to election wins in the prior week as evidence the shutdown energized the base. “We lost money on the ledger, but upgraded the narrative,” one insider said. A billboard mock-up designed for the next cycle read: “We shut the government down — and all we got was this unshakable moral high ground.”
Punchline: When you go to war over tax credits and end up opening the government with none, the real victory may reside in the press release emphasising how strongly you stood. Really, we’re talking posture.
