Tapper: 'This is Also a Choice by Senate Democrats Not to Open the Government'

The ground beneath Democrats' feet is starting to shift.

A government shutdown is not a strategy that works absent the media. The whole point of the exercise is to do something dramatic in order to bring attention and raise awareness of some particular issue. In this case, Democrats decided their issue would be health care. They would shut down the government to make demand Republicans extend Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of this year.

For the past few weeks, that strategy has worked pretty well for Democrats for two reasons. First, the shutdown didn't really have much impact right away, especially because President Trump worked to ensure that service members would continue to get paid. 

Second, as expected, the media mostly played along. So when Democrats shout absurd things out loud like 'this is Trump's shutdown!' the media just sits there quietly and lets it pass even though it's a lie. 

28 days ago, Republicans shut down the government.

Now, food stamps are about to run out for 40+ MILLION Americans.

All while Republicans refuse to show up for work and negotiate about Americans’ health care.

— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) October 28, 2025

That's the opposite of reality and no comparable lie by Republicans would get a pass. But we all know the media is usually rooting for Democrats to win so they get the kid gloves treatment when they lie like this.

That's how things have been going so far, but both of those conditions mentioned above are finally starting to change. First, as mentioned in the tweet, something Dems care about is about to run out of money. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) aka food stamps will be broke on Saturday.

Roughly one in eight people in the United States receive food stamps, which average around $187 a month and cost the federal government about $8 billion monthly. Lawmakers must regularly approve money for the program, though SNAP maintains a sizable reserve to cover any emergencies or shortfalls.

President Trump could direct the "sizeable reserve" be used to cover expenses for the program, but so far hasn't done so. Yesterday, a group of 25 states sued to try to force his hand. [emphasis added]

In their lawsuit, officials from 25 states and the District of Columbia criticized the Trump administration for that sudden policy reversal, arguing that the federal government had a legal obligation to maintain funding for food stamps, which Congress made permanent in the 1960s.

The suit was filed by a mix of Democratic attorneys general and governors from states including Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Nevada and North Carolina. If they prevail, it could compel U.S.D.A to tap its emergency funds and provide benefits to those states’ residents, though the exact scope of any relief would be up to a judge.

The states asked the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts to rule by Friday on a motion that could essentially force the administration to tap the contingency funds to pay SNAP benefits next month. The fund, which is estimated to contain $5 billion to $6 billion, would be enough to provide at least partial payments to enrollees.

I highlighted that bit at the end because even if a court orders Trump to use the reserve money, it's not enough to cover a single month of SNAP payments. The cost for a month is $8 billion and the amount of the reserve is, at most, $6 billion. So one way of looking at this is the Democrats might be able to kick this particular can down the road about 2-3 weeks.

And once again, that might work for them so long as the media continues to play along. For instance, only at the very end of the NY Times story on the lawsuit do we get this lone voice pointing out the real problem.

“We’ll continue to look at every option we have to take care of people in our state,” Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas said in an interview. “But ultimately the thing that makes the most sense — and is by far not only the best solution, but should be happening because it is their responsibility — is to have Senate Democrats quit playing games and fund our government.”

As long as what Democrats are saying makes up the first 10 paragraphs of the story and what Republicans are saying is relegated to two paragraphs at the end, Dems can continue this shut down while simultaneously complaining about the problems created by their own shutdown. Having the media in your pocket really helps.

But as I said above, even that may finally be changing. Rep. Melanie Stansbury went on CNN to make the case that President Trump was a big meanie and instead of just playing along, host Jake Tapper asked the obvious question: Why don't Democrats stop shutting down the government? 

In the clip below, you can see how quickly this whole house of cards collapses the moment a reporter just states the obvious. Stansbury tries repeating her talking points, but Tapper points out this is a very short term solution at best and once again asks why Democrats won't just reopen the government. Stansbury seems stunned. She is momentarily left smiling, like a kid caught with her hand in the cookie jar. She clearly wasn't expecting this much pushback on the basic facts, which tells you a lot about what Democrats expect from the media.

Even CNN isn't buying Democrats' lies about the shutdown anymore.

JAKE TAPPER: "This is ... a choice by Senate Democrats to not vote to open the government."

MELANIE STANSBURY: "No it is not."

TAPPER: "Yes it is." pic.twitter.com/b6BoHxA1wb

— GOP (@GOP) October 29, 2025

Stansbury then comes up with a new half-truth. It's true Republicans have not returned to the House, but she knowns that's not why the government is shutdown. House Republicans passed a clear CR to keep the government open a month ago. Senate Democrats have voted to maintain a filibuster of that bill something like 13 times. Tapper lets her have the last word and ends the interview. Still, Rep. Stansbury doesn't come off looking too good in this exchange. 

So, getting back to my two points that seem to be shifting for Dems, there are finally deadlines approaching they care about and, maybe, the media is starting to tire of covering for them. Take those two together and this could all go very badly for Dems. That may be why Sen. Thune is telling Politico he feels a vibe shift.

A looming cliff of crucial deadlines, plus fresh outside pressure, is adding new urgency into bipartisan conversations that have been sputtering for weeks.

“I think they’ve picked up,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune told POLITICO about the rank-and-file bipartisan talks. “Deadlines have a way of doing that.”

Several of Thune’s senators, plus Speaker Mike Johnson and other House GOP leaders, appear increasingly convinced that enough centrist Democrats are getting ready to fold — potentially by early next week.

It's not over until its over, but if just a few major news outlets decide to stop playing dumb about whose shutdown this is, Democrats will fold. It really is that simple.

Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.

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