Clearly Obama did not think the government would be operating today. The Lincoln Memorial visit was supposed to be a backdrop for a speech about the government shutdown. Instead, it was more Beltway mythology about bipartisanship. Democrats are still demoralized and need Obama to pick a fight, not pick up GOP talking points. The about cut matters to those programs and people effected by it, but have nothing to do with the budget deficit.

For some reason, I find it hard to get worked up over the looming shut down of the federal government. Congressional Dems can't negotiate their way out a paper bag, GOPers only care about hurting things Dems care about and tax cuts, but do not care about the Deficit. And Obama cares about reelection.

the undo something congress

Harry Truman famously labeled the 80th (1947-49) Congress the Do Nothing Congress, while the 110th (2009-2011) Congress has been called the Do Something Congress due to the Democratic Majority's penchant for passing lots of big legislation during their brief period of having 60% in both chambers.

So far, the 111th Congress is hoping to be what I call the Undo Something Congress. Their goal is not to pass anything substantive, but to repeal the reform legislation of the prior Congress, starting with Health Care Reform. Also in the cue is College Aid Reform, Wall Street Reform, and undoing Obama Administration regulations regarding the environment. I am pretty clear what Republicans are against, namely every big accomplishment of the Do Something Congress, but I really have no idea what they are for other than reducing government spending. The reductions they want, however, are not about making the government smaller, but about cutting programs Democrats favor, either because they believe in the merits of the program or because it helps their district/state/reelection.

Maybe it should be called the Undo Something That Democrats Like Congress instead. But that would not be as catchy. And Washington DC is all about appearances and soundbites, not substance and reality.