As I walked down and back to grab lunch, an odd thought hit me. I’ve been thinking about the partisan split over the budget. Poll numbers show that Republicans are more likely to want their leaders to push on with cuts while Democrats are more likely to favor some sort of compromise. In particular, the WSJ/NBC poll shows Republicans, especially those who favor the “tea party” movement, are more intransigent with 68% saying Republican leaders should stick to their tougher positions on budget cuts. Just 28% urged a compromise. Including less conservative Republicans, the numbers shift but a majority, at 56%, called for GOP lawmakers to stand firm while 38% want compromise. Playing into this are the reports on the particular factors causing the gridlock: According to Harry Reid, Democrats and Republicans in Congress have essentially agreed on spending levels for the rest of the year, but a budget deal is being held up by a split over policy measures related to Planned Parenthood funding and clean-air regulation. John Boehnerdenied that the so-called “riders” were driving the stalemate — saying he was committed to fighting for the most spending cuts possible.
Here’s my odd thought: Could the Republicans — or at least the Tea Party Republicans — actually want the shutdown without publically admitting it? After all, it instantly cuts the government back to just the essential services, without any congressional fighting or presidential involvement. If they can demonstrate that the country runs just fine when the government is in shutdown-mode, they can argue their case for deep cuts of those services that were furloughed. It achieves the goal.
