Yeah, I would put it that way:
http://www.katv.com/...
Pryor said the Republicans came across as "childish and petty."
"They embarrassed America. They really did embarrass America and by virtue of them doing this, what they're doing is they're sapping the confidence in our country. They're also diminishing America's prestige abroad. And that is unforgivable. We cannot allow that to happen again," Pryor said. - KATV 7, 10/17/13
Well said. If there's anyone who probably feels really embarrassed by the shutdown, it has to be Tea Party Congressman Tom Cotton (R. AR) who ended up caving. But of course conservatives are trying to paint Cotton as a hero during all of this:
http://www.powerlineblog.com/...
Tom nonetheless could have voted “no,” safe in the knowledge that the legislation would pass anyway. I strongly suspect thatn more than a few Republican members took that course.
It’s not an honorable one, however. Nor would it have helped Tom. Mark Pryor, Tom’s 2014 opponent in the Arkansas Senate race, is using Tom’s refusal to vote for a “clean” CR against him. Voting in favor of a continued shutdown and against raising the debt ceiling would have been a gift to Pryor.
Having voted “yes,” Tom is in a pretty good position in his race against Pryor. He can point out (1) that Pryor’s vote gave us Obamacare, which is massively unpopular in Arkansas, (2) Tom’s vote against a clean CR gave Pryor and other Democrats a chance to rethink their position on Obamacare in view of its obvious problems, (3) Pryor, following the lead of Obama and Harry Reid, doubled down on Obamacare, and (4) Tom then voted responsibly by supporting the Reid-McConnell compromise. - Power Line, 10/18/13
I don't know if that argument is going to work. The majority of Arkansas voters clearly know that Cotton helped cause this shutdown:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
-In Arkansas Mark Pryor leads Republican challenger Tom Cotton 44/41. Voters there oppose the shutdown 59/32. When informed that Cotton supported it, 45% of voters say they’re less likely to support him for a move up to the Senate next year compared to just 33% who say they’re more likely to. - PPP, 10/16/13
So really the shutdown helped Pryor and hurt Cotton. But of course the GOP is going to spend big to deceive voters. One way the GOP is going to try to defeat Pryor is by tying him to another Democratic Senator they defeated three years ago:
http://thehill.com/...
The National Republican Senatorial Committee is out with a new memo arguing that Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) is "the senator most likely to lose in 2014," insisting he's no different than former Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), who lost her reelection bid in a rout in 2010.
The group backs up that widely held belief by arguing that Pryor's strong fundraising, family name recognition and help from the Clinton family won't help him much.
"Meet Blanche Lincoln 2.0," NRSC Political Director Ward Baker writes in the memo.
"Mark Pryor has the name, has the money, has the Clinton machine, and is running for reelection in Arkansas, a state that proved those talking points won’t get you very far if you are fundamentally misaligned with the electorate." - The Hill, 10/18/13
Ironically, Pryor is in a much better position than Lincoln for supporting the Affordable Care Act whereas Lincoln made headlines for trying to stall the bill causing her to receive a primary challenger and deep dip in the poll numbers. Polling more than a year out before her reelection found Lincoln trailing by 20 points. Pryor's a smarter politician than Lincoln was and he will put up a tough and aggressive fight. He had a great fundraising quarter but Cotton and the GOP are going to spend big to deceive voters. If you would like to get involved with Pryor's campaign or donate, you can do so here:
http://pryorforsenate.com/