It's on Schumer. It's on establishment Dems

[Bobstandard]

Schumer’s Democrats have enabled every shitty thing Trump, Musk, and the Republicans do for at least the next 6 months. We are so screwed. They are clearly not the people who can help us out of this mess.

And the excuses are such sophistry, such bs!

[elleng]

1. 'Sorry,' it's on

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Vought

[JohnSJ]

5. It is the project 2025 playbook.

[elleng]

6. Right, he's a big hater.

[JohnSJ]

7. The country is in so much trouble Ellen, and I think a good number of people don't realize it.

[Bobstandard]

10. You're right about Vought, but we didn't elect him

We elected Schumer to lead in the fight against Trump and for Democracy. All he can do is triangulate, prevaricate, and fold. He’s an enabler. Enablers own the outcome.

[regnaD kciN]

2. And, in six months, we'll get something even worse...

…and will have “no choice” but to go along with that, too, for the exact same reasons.

[JanMichael]

47. No it will be lesser worser. At least maybe.

[BannonsLiver]

3. I've lost all faith in Senate Dems

There are some fighters but the majority still seem to be playing by the rules of the last war and are being utterly decimated. It’s either total weakness or some guy in a hoodie.

[Ursus Rex]

44. They didn't all exactly fight the "last war" either.

Lots of hand-wringing, capitulation, and now fundraising. I’d be fine if they were using parliamentarian tactics and getting stuff done under the radar, but all I see is relentless success by the Administration.

[JohnSJ]

4. What would happen if the Democrats filibustered, and the government shut down?

[sdaz]

11. Alot of people wouldn't get paid and still have to work

[gab13by13]

12. And millions of Americans will take to the streets

And revolt and they can be led by Congressional Democrats.

[lastlib]

15. lambs to the slaughter...... n/t

[gab13by13]

29. Sorry you underestimate unwashed Americans.

[Nanjeanne]

20. And yet the biggest federal employee union says vote NO.

[BComplex]

21. And those of us on social security wouldn't get a check, and judges wouldn't be holding court.

After I saw Schumer on Chris Hayes tonight, I kind of understood what Schumer was saying about NOT wanting the government to shut down. He didn't explain it worth a shit (as usual), but when he said right now they're getting court rulings, but if the government shuts down, so would the courts! They have been our ONLY protection at the moment. But I'm trying to get every last social security check I possibly can before trump/musk shut down social security and we don't get anything! Me and about 75 million more Americans.

So it really is a choice between two disasters. But on this one, I'm with Schumer. Up until now, I've been on the "don't give them an inch on ANYTHING" team. But we can't afford to lose the courts right now, and a bunch of us, who are probably eventually going to lose our Social Security checks, can't afford to lose even one check. A shutdown would hurt worse than allowing the CR to go through.

[Stuckinthebush]

49. ...and judges wouldn't be holding court

THIS! A shut down would be catastrophic in the fight against Trump. Let them choke on their budget. No win situation here.

[BComplex]

55. The republicans punked us this time. I'm not ready to destroy the democratic party over it.

We got knocked down pretty badly this time. We need to get up and quit eating our own.

[Mossfern]

23. And many of them

would be happy to do so in order to stop the madness.

[Freethinker65]

30. And they end up getting paid their back wages. It sucks, but isn't unprecedented.

We had FBI agents sheepishly come to the food pantry for a few weeks because of one of the last shutdowns. They were very humbled and appreciative. They also donated back once they got their paychecks.

At least many government workers would still have jobs. With the CR, Trump/Musk are allowed to play around with the budget money to defund whatever they please.

[CrispyQ]

51. A lot of them are wondering when the Musk ax is gonna fall on them. -nt

[Ace Rothstein]

8. Is this what it's like watching a political party die?

[Bobstandard]

9. It's worse than that

It’s capitulation to oligarchy and capitalism. It’s the evaporation of the opposition party in a two party system. It’s horrifying. I bet you feel it too. Damn!

[lastlib]

16. No, it's what it's like to watch a once-great nation die.......

Lincoln: "....that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth."

tRump: "Hold my hamberder...."

[mucholderthandirt]

45. It's like watching America die. The people who are bound by oath to protect it are helping tear it down.

Inaction is just as bad as doing the wrong thing. The Republicans love to shut the government down when Dems are in charge, let's give them a taste of it for a change. Maybe the people will finally stand up.

[Gimpyknee]

13. It's time for a new Minority Leader

Fuck Chuck.

[Pototan]

14. Sorry, but Schumer did the correct thing

He had two choices, bad and worse. He chose bad.

We, as Democrats, keep blaming the elected officials who sit in the minority. We sit in the minority because we failed to win enough seats.

If the Government was shut down and 900,000 workers are furloughed, we would have played into the hands of Elon Musk.

[Sessuch]

17. Elon wins?

If that is true, I will turn in my Dem card.

[crimycarny]

18. Those workers already ARE in the hands of Elon Musk

Allowing the CR to go through isn't going to prevent anything. It will only further empower Trump and Musk to skirt the rules and do massive damage.

We kept acting like this is business as usual, we're not in a fight to prevent a shut down, we're in a fight to prevent the loss of our democracy.

[Gimpyknee]

39. You're absolutely correct!

[Nanjeanne]

22. And yet the largest federal employee union stated Dems should vote NO on cloture. They feel the

bill is worse Han a shutdown.

[uponit7771]

24. False, Americans were behind Democrats

Quinnipac 53 would blame GOP for shutdown

[Freethinker65]

32. So instead of being temporarily furloughed, you prefer they get fired??

The CR allows Trump/Musk to ignore the actual budget and fund/not fund whatever they want.

[Pototan]

40. If employees were furloughed

what makes you think Elon would bring them back upon reopening?

If we voted against the budget in a filibuster move, we would own the shutdown and muddy the waters on who's to blame when services break down.

Let the Repukes own the whole damn thing. No confusion. This is all on Republicans.

[Freethinker65]

48. Yep. Schumer is ok with them owning the whole thing alright.

No need for the Legislature to even exist.
Let the Executive Branch own everything.

You realize the Trump administration is already withholding fund to dictate what knowledge can be taught at elementary schools through Universities? That they are curtailing the rights of protestors exercising their First Amendment rights? That they are arguing against all regulations protecting the American consumer? That they will sell off National resources/privatize everything of value? That they are isolating us from our former decades long allies? That they are proposing investing US tax dollars in Trump/donor crypto? That they intend to spend money any way they want regardless of what the Legislature dictates in the official budget?


Yep. Let them own the whole thing. That will show them!!!

Currently, the Legislature still has the power of the purse strings/budget. The courts will only allow money to be spent/not spent as the Legislature has dictated in the passed budgets. This current bill cedes the power of what to do with the budget money to the Executive Branch. If the bill passes, Federal Employees that get fired from now on for no cause other than intended destruction of functionality of Departments or vindictiveness will have no recourse.

If the bill fails. Government will grind to a halt with only essential services remaining. That sucks, but we have been through that before.The GOP Legislature will need to pass funding bills. Will everything we want get funded immediately? Nope. Will social safety nets get funded? You betcha. Will Democrats have more leverage to get other Departments funded? Yep. Will Trump/Musk be able to deny funding? Nope.

[mucholderthandirt]

46. So we do nothing because we're the minority? We just let P25 walk all over us and destroy the country?

I swear. I don't know what's wrong with people. We are facing the biggest evil we've ever faced, the biggest threat to our democracy, and the answer is to just let the other side win? Not fight? No protest? Wimpy objections?

Oh, please Mr. Trump, don't be mean to the people! Don't take their SS away, their welfare, their jobs! SOB Oh, it's so sad, all powerful Trump, don't make us have to stand up and oppose you! We don't have the guts for it!

[nowforever]

19. Schumer is right

Trump would use this to distract the public from what a disaster he is. He would scream how it's the Democrats who want to destroy our nation and it would be a nonstop barrage of his usual B.S. that the gullible public and complicit press would eat up. Trump is a master of of manipulation and this would allow him to lay it all onto the democrats and provide justification for his dismantling of our government. It is actually a smart play by Schumer who realizes how Trump would dominate the airways with his lying and finger pointing. Let the Orange Turd dig his own grave without anyone to blame but himself. His current policies both foreign and domestic are horrendous and the collapse is coming quickly and he needs the spotlight to be on him and him alone. This time there will be nobody to blame, he is truly painting himself into a corner and there will be no escape. Schumer is playing an excellent game of chess he is sacrificing a rook to trap the king.

[uponit7771]

25. False, Qynipqc: 53% of would blame Trump/MAGA for shutdown

[nowforever]

33. Not after

Trump uses his bully pulpit to bellow continuously about how the Democrats are doing this. You underestimate the power of this malignant narcissist to twist people's minds. It's truly the only thing he excels at and he has the press in his pocket to assist him. This isn't about right or wrong it's about a crazy man who has perfected finger pointing and never taking responsibility for anything. He will post 24 hours a day and vilify and lie nonstop. Schumer is handing him the rope and Wishing him well. The shit is just hitting the fan and Trump is standing right in front of it.

[Gimpyknee]

41. Wishful thinking

[uponit7771]

42. MAGA has been using their amplification channels to nth degree and Americans aren't biting...

... on this being.abyone else but Trump's fault.

The "it's Dems fault" narrative started weeks ago and failed even with no push back narrative from DNC. Trump the strong man NOT owning everything (seeing he takes the good news for himself) is antithetical to his whole brand.

Schumer has no justification for this vote based off of voter sentiment and the facts

[questionseverything]

43. It's easy for him to "twist minds " if you give up before you start

[Freethinker65]

50. So just make it even easier, and just cede the power of the budget to the Executive Branch?

That'll show 'em.

[Meowmee]

26. It's on the whole system here that has no real standards for who can run for office

And the idiots that voted for this. I especially blame the idiot non voters who would likely vote D and those who vote third party green etc. Big fu to all of them.

Any other current sane country/democracy, this psycho would have been gone long ago. Instead he is allowed to run again to kill more people and do Russia's bidding. And fascists and bloody fools vote for it.

[mr715]

27. Stop with "establishment"

It is on the people it is on, but the "establishment" is meaningless. If you mean leadership, say it. But they are all establishment, kind of by definition.

[TomSlick]

28. Schumer was faced with two bad choices, bad and worse.

Unfortunately, he chose worse. He opted to vote against short-term chaos and for long-term autocracy.

I don't ascribe evil motives, just poor decision making. Schumer is an institutionalist when what we need is a fighter.

It's time for new leadership in the Senate.

[gab13by13]

31. I agree, a shutdown wouldn't come close to lasting 6 months.

So when I don't get my IRS tax return because Musk cut thousands of IRS workers who should I complain to after Democrats gave the power to Musk to do that?

We are in for 6 months of holy hell, especially blue states will be targeted.

[SunSeeker]

57. How about blaming the Republicans who orchestrated this whole thing?

[mr715]

58. Can be both.

Republicans for setting a trap.

Democratic leadership for seeing the trap, examining it, talking to the media about it.

Saying, "Oh, there is a trap here. What an interesting trap... This trap sure is pretty."

Then stepping in the trap.

[SunSeeker]

60. No Democrat said "this trap sure is pretty." They agonized over two terrible options.

Senators Catherine Cortez Masto agreed with Schumer that a shutdown would be worse than allowing this 6 month CR to proceed to a vote because a shutdown would place thousands of federal workers on unpaid furlough and hand Trump and Musk more power to gut federal agencies.

“A government shutdown would be devastating for the American people. It would force tens of thousands of Nevada military personnel, union members, law enforcement agents and nurses to work without pay," Cortez Masto said in a statement. "The last government shutdown cost the American economy $11 billion and thousands of hardworking Americans were harmed. I cannot vote for that."

As Chuck Schumer explained his reasoning to Chris Hayes after he left that contentious Senate Dems meeting:
"Why is it Elon Musk and Donald Trump want a Government shutdown? So they can take control of the government and do their vicious, horrible things”…“In a shutdown they get to determine what is an essential service and they will just cut to smithereens, far greater than what’s in the CR bill, which is a lousy bill, far greater than that. And there’s no recourse. You can’t go to court.”

I’m not happy, but I understand why they had to do it. I will focus my anger at Republicans who caused all this, not my fellow Democrats.

[oldmanlynn]

34. I think they were worried

I think the Senate Dems were somewhat worried that if the government did shut down and some turmoil came out of that that Trump would try to do some form of Marshall law and try to take control.

[Trueblue1968]

35. The senate dems are weak .... Schumer get tough!! I think Harry Reid would kick the Repukes in the ass

[Attilatheblond]

37. The term is Martial Law & he's gonna find an excuse to impose it one way or another

That's why he put a compliant drunk in charge of DOD and canned the military leaders who serve the Constitution, not an insane tyrant.

[crimycarny]

36. When will the Democratic leadership realize that their standard tactics haven't worked?

The stupid paddles held up at the SOTU, some House Dems voting to censure Congressman Al Greene (they should have stood united and supported him), and now Schumer acquiesing and laying down without a fight on the CR.

They keep guessing wrong and continue to do so.

[Ford_Prefect]

38. If you cannot exercise the strength you have when you can you will never get another chance.

I have said before that they do not seem to understand when it is time to stand up and fight. "We'll get them next time" sounds like an excuse rather than a working tactic.

[CrispyQ]

52. Is this basically the bill they're voting on? This doc is a week old.

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/250308_johnsons_yearlong_crpdf.pdf

snip...

Instead of staying at the negotiating table to pass bipartisan full-year funding bills, Republican
leadership walked away, and House Republicans have now released a partisan, full-year
continuing resolution (CR) they plan to vote on early next week.

As suspected, this full-year CR would hand vast discretion over spending decisions to
President Trump and his administration to zero out programs and redirect funding as they
see fit.

➢ Whereas Congress typically provides scores of specific funding directives for key
program and priorities in full-year funding bills and the accompanying explanatory
statements, under this full-year CR, hundreds of those congressional directives fall away.

➢ This creates slush funds for the Trump administration to reshape spending priorities,
eliminate longstanding programs, pick winners and losers, and more.

➢ Failing to provide specific funding directives from Congress means the Trump
administration has fewer legal constraints on what it can do.

➢ House Republicans could have addressed this glaring problem—but chose not to. Their
yearlong CR includes plenty of unnecessary anomalies but doesn’t address this
fundamental issue because they prefer slush funds for this administration to cut the
programs it wants in order to fund Trump’s priorities instead.

Myriad member priorities are at risk of significant reductions in funding or elimination
under the full-year CR. CDS projects are also not funded in the CR.

➢ Under this CR, the Trump administration could—for example—decide not to spend
funding previously allocated for combatting fentanyl, the SUPPORT Act and other
substance abuse and mental health programs, or specific NIH priorities like Alzheimer’s
disease and vaccine research—and instead steer funding to other priorities of its
choosing. It could also pick and choose which Military Construction, Army Corps, or
transit improvement and expansion projects to fund without direction from Congress—
leaving Democratic states and priorities in the lurch.

➢ This is particularly risky for Democratic cities and states that may have to beg for their
priorities to be funded from an administration that has already cut off vast swaths of
funding and threatened retaliation if jurisdictions do not abide the administration’s
threats.

This is not a “clean” CR. Far from it, the CR includes a bevy of anomalies to provide
additional funding or flexibility for some priorities while shortchanging most others.

[Ping Tung]

53. They've gone into full "Politics as Usual" mode.

They actually believe that they can make deals with lunatics.

“To argue with a man who has renounced the use and authority of reason, and whose philosophy consists in holding humanity in contempt, is like administering medicine to the dead, or endeavoring to convert an atheist by scripture.” Thomas Paine

[MontanaMama]

54. When FOTUS is praising Schumer's vote

It’s the WRONG vote.

[SunSeeker]

56. Bullshit. You don't blame the kidnapping on the parent who paid the ransom.

[valleyrogue]

59. WRONG. It is solely on the GOP.

I wish people would stop doing this. You are doing the other side's job for them.