"I Hate My Opponent" Guy Really Could’ve Used His Opponent
Everything you need to know about the government shutdown
The federal government was shutdown late Tuesday night after the Senate failed to pass multiple proposed continuing resolutions, which would have extended government funding.
As the deadline drew near, the White House made sure to let us who to blame should a shutdown occur: Democrats.
They even displayed a countdown clock right out of a nightmare episode of 24:
Now, while the New Year’s Eve countdown clock made clear where Americans should place blame, it didn’t explain how we got here.
So, here’s a brief snapshot of what led to this government shutdown.
Government Shutdown Timeline
March 14, 2025: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer votes to pass CR that funds government until September 2025.
"As bad as passing the CR is, allowing Donald Trump to take even more power via a government shutdown is a far worse option."1
July 4, 2025: Big Beautiful Bill is signed into law, cutting Medicaid by 12%.2
July 8, 2025: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer pens a letter3 urging bipartisanship ahead of a looming September government shutdown, citing concerns for cuts to healthcare.
"As we enter the July work period, Republicans will soon confront the decision as to whether they continue down this dangerous partisan path: Will they work across the aisle with Democrats to responsibly fund the government or will they bend the knee to the pressure from President Trump…"
August 4, 2025: Democratic Leaders call for meeting with GOP leaders4 to discuss impending CR. Republicans ignore the request.
August 28, 2025: Democratic Leaders again call for meeting with GOP leaders5 upon their return to Congress to discuss the potential lapse in government funding.
"Are there any plans to address the looming healthcare crisis?"
September 12, 2025: President Trump says "don’t even bother dealing with [Democrats’]" shutdown demands.6
September 19, 2025: House Republicans pass a CR, in which they frame the Democrat’s desire to reverse healthcare cuts as "demanding $1.5 trillion in new spending."7 This CR does not pass in the Senate and Republicans leave town to avoid negotiations.8
September 20, 2025: Democratic Leaders call for meeting with President Trump to discuss impending government shutdown.9
September 22, 2025: President Trump agrees to meet with Democratic Leaders.10
September 23, 2025: President Trump cancels meeting with Democratic Leaders.11
September 26, 2025: Trump tells Democrats to "Go fuck yourself."
"He read all the shit they’re asking for, and he said, ‘on second thought, go fuck yourself."12
September 29, 2025: President Trump meets with Democratic Leaders, but won’t budge on healthcare, and instead pushes "Trump 2028" hats in their faces.1314
September 29, 2025: Trump Admin and other Republicans promise they will talk later on healthcare issues if Democrats keep government open.
"They need to do the right thing, keep the government open, and then we can talk about it."15
September 29, 2025: Republicans freak out after Bad Bunny is announced to do the Super Bowl Halftime Show (this doesn’t relate at all, but somehow MAGA Republicans were more upset by this than the government shutting down).16
October 1, 2025: Government shuts down.
So, while Democratic leaders have attempted to discuss reversing healthcare cuts since the day the One Big Beautiful Bill passed, President Trump didn’t care to meet to discuss it until one day prior to the government shutdown.
It’s a wonder he’s so good at business.
Now, look, this back-and-forth has always been about healthcare. Democrats are attempting to save what they can of the healthcare concessions made in the One Big Beautiful Bill, and so Republicans are pulling out one of their favorite buzzwords to give their voter base a jolt:
Woah, ILLEGAL ALIENS?!? Slow down! It’s the first day of October and Republicans leaders are already bringing out their favorite book, "Scary Stories to Tell MAGA."
I don’t want to downplay people’s concerns about where their all-American, hard-earned money is going, but typically, if ever you see the scapegoat be immigrants or trans people, you’re being manipulated by fear tactics as old as time.
To explain what Republicans are talking about, the program they’re referring to is called Emergency Medicaid and it "reimburses hospitals for emergency care they are obligated to provide"17 (yes, in this country, it is illegal to not provide emergency treatment to someone).18
So, if a hospital is not reimbursed for emergency that care… the hospital will have to pay out of their own pocket to cover that care (not the taxpayers!), which could then push hospitals to close operations for lack of funds.
And that is what the "illegal aliens" scare tactic is all about.
Now, look, no one likes a government shutdown, although President Trump doesn’t seem to hate the idea either:
But a government shutdown is not good! And it’s literally the job of congress to fund our government, and, at this moment, they’ve failed. However, it’s extremely disingenuous to size this all up as "Democrats want free healthcare for illegal aliens."
Republicans leaders know they can hold power longer if they demonize the other side, making them a less viable option come midterms and the next presidential election. This government shutdown gives Republicans another opportunity to point the finger and place blame while the American people are on the line. So, while they say they don’t want a government shutdown, they’re eager to take full advantage of the optics it presents.
In an ideal world, healthcare would be something both parties come together on and make accessible for everyone. But we don’t live in an ideal world.
We live in this one, where healthcare is something you must earn and where the President of the United States wants the most power he can get.
To get that power, he forgoes working with his political opposition, digs his heels in and says, "I hate my opponent."19
Medicaid cut by 12% in 9 Questions About the Republican Megabill, Answered