The Art of the Blame Game: Trump is trying to make Congress take all the credit for the shutdown

President Donald Trump is shifting his approach to the government shutdown, effectively letting the focus move from the White House to Congress as lawmakers remain deadlocked over funding. This isn’t the first time the government has shut down with Trump in office, but this time around, the heat is squarely on the legislative branch as a stalemate over key healthcare provisions continues between Senate Republicans and Democrats.

It’s a noticeable change from the 35-day shutdown during his first term, which was primarily centered on his demand for border wall funding, a policy priority he famously “owned” at the time. This current situation seems to be giving the President a perfect opportunity to step back and let the Democrats bear the political consequences, according to Fox. Libertarian political columnist Kristin Tate explained that “By staying relatively quiet right now, President Trump is allowing Democrats to ‘own’ the shutdown.”

She went on to say that the President knows if he gets too confrontational right now, the narrative will center around his remarks rather than the Democrats’ refusal to support a reasonable spending bill.” Basically, by keeping a “low profile,” Trump is allowing the public to focus on the Democrats’ actions, which Tate believes means the Democrats “will ultimately bear most of the political consequences of the shutdown.”

Trump doesn’t want any blame over what he’s created

The government entered a partial shutdown on Wednesday because the Senate couldn’t agree on a short-term funding bill, which the House had already passed back in September. Even though three Democrats voted with Republicans for the stopgap funding bill on Tuesday, it didn’t hit the 60-vote requirement needed to pass. Trump and the GOP immediately blamed democrats.

The main issue causing the logjam is a disagreement over healthcare provisions. Republicans, including President Trump, claim that Democrats are trying to push for healthcare for “illegal immigrants” by trying to repeal a part of the President’s “big, beautiful bill,” which reduced Medicaid eligibility for noncitizens. Democrats, on the other hand, insist that’s “absolutely false” and a “big lie.”

Their actual goal is to permanently extend certain subsidies in the Affordable Care Act that are set to expire at the end of 2025. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., was very clear, stating, “They say that undocumented people are going to get these credits,” and then immediately adding, “That is absolutely false. That is one of the big lies that they tell.”

This shift in strategy puts Democrats in a very tough spot. As Republican strategist Matt Gorman put it, “Times have shown over and over through the years that the public supports funding the government. They penalize the party that attaches extra policy priorities to whatever bill does that.” Gorman predicts that as the shutdown continues, you’ll see “moderate Democrats splinter off” from their party’s leadership.