WASHINGTON — Congressional Democrats are taking a page from the playbook of President Donald Trump and hard-line conservatives: Fight for your base and don’t blink. In forcing a showdown over immigration — and triggering a government shutdown — Democrats have embraced a confrontational, rule-breaking strategy they once blasted as irresponsible when practiced by the other party. It’s a strategy shift for Democrats, who negotiated repeatedly with Republicans during the punishing Obama-era budget battles. Democrats believe a series of factors made this the right moment for the party to risk a shutdown. Democrats say that helped open the door for the party to take a harder line in the shutdown fight.

Source: National Post January 19, 2018 22:52 UTC