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Carl Higbie was right to call out the Democrat machine for its theater over the shutdown — this wasn’t clumsy governing, it was cold political calculus. For weeks the left screamed about Republican responsibility while privately admitting this fight was leverage, and then, when the optics turned, a carefully chosen handful of Democrats quietly stepped in to save face.
On the night the Senate finally moved, the motion to proceed to the continuing resolution passed 60–40 after eight Democratic senators and one Independent broke ranks to join Republicans. The roll call reads like a who’s who of safe or outgoing Democrats: Tim Kaine, Catherine Cortez Masto, John Fetterman, Maggie Hassan, Dick Durbin, Jacky Rosen, Jeanne Shaheen and Angus King.
Ask yourself why those names were picked: most are not facing the same immediate political pressure because they aren’t on the ballot next year or are already bowing out. That’s no coincidence — it’s the opposite of courage. It’s the political class protecting itself while pretending to put country over party.
Americans who’ve lost paychecks, seen food banks strained and watched federal services sputter through a manufactured crisis know what real sacrifice looks like, and they didn’t ask for this. Yet Democrats held the country hostage for talking points, then handed the fix to members who could afford the fallout — all while claiming moral high ground. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie and others rightly called out this strategy as callous and calculated.
The bill that cleared the procedural vote does contain back pay and protections for federal employees, and Senate leaders were offered a promise of a December vote on ACA subsidies — promises, not guarantees. Conservative voters should be skeptical of backroom assurances that come after the public has suffered; political favors and vague future votes are no substitute for accountable leadership.
The bottom line is simple: Washington’s insiders bargained among themselves while ordinary Americans paid the price. Patriots must remember who stood firm for taxpayers and who staged a calculated retreat to protect careers and headlines. Come election day, hardworking men and women should send a clear message that playing politics with people’s livelihoods will no longer be tolerated.
