The major concern for
congressional Republicans is not being blamed for the government shutdown their intransigence has made all but inevitable.
Good luck with that, guys.
On the eve of a government shutdown, Americans disapprove of all players in Washington’s latest budget standoff in a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, although they save particular ire for Republicans’ handling of the fight to fund the government beyond midnight.
Barely one in four (26 percent) approve of congressional Republicans’ handling of budget negotiations, while 34 percent approve of their Democratic counterparts and 41 percent approve of Obama’s approach. In each case, larger numbers say they “disapprove” of how Republicans, Democrats and Obama are handling things. Underscoring the disgruntled mood, 27 percent of Americans disapprove of all three. [emphasis added]
And
69 percent of the people who disapprove of Republicans handling say they're "acting like spoiled children," sez today's CNN poll. There is absolutely no way that Republicans can shift the narrative at this point to blame it on Democrats. None. There is no way they won't end up being blamed when, at the stroke of midnight, the government shuts down.
Except they won't be blamed by the people who matter to them most: the 26 percent of Republicans who vote in primaries and Jim DeMint with all his Heritage Action money.
The federal government will shut down unless the House passes a clean continuing resolution before midnight tonight. Email your House member now.