The media and the left are agitated that Sens. Rand Paul and Mitch McConnell were caught on a “hot mic” discussing the utter lack of a White House strategy to navigate the government shutdown fight. Paul notes, in his conversation with McConnell, that he doesn’t the think White House “poll-tested ‘We won’t negotiate’ and it’s awful for them to say that over and over again.”
Contrary to media reports, Obama and the Democrats have a very weak hand to play. Initial polls already find that the public assigns blame for the shutdown almost equally between Republicans and the Democrats. As Democrats continue to reject GOP proposals to resolve the crisis, the public is likely to assign them more blame for the continued shutdown.
Paul recognizes the terrible position Democrats have carved out for themselves. “We’re going to win this, I think,” Paul observes. The Democrats have every tool of the media at their disposal, and yet can’t quite tie the Republicans with blame for the shutdown. Every time they go to the cameras to declare they won’t “negotiate,” their standing in the public erodes.
Barring a unilateral surrender, Republicans are going to “win this.”
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