The march toward government shutdown got its start in mid-July with a meeting in the office of Senator Mike Lee of Utah. Lee and his colleagues Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida huddled with representatives of Tea Party groups like Heritage Action, ForAmerica, and the Tea Party Patriots. Their mission: to turn defunding Obamacare from a fringe idea with little congressional support into a popular movement.
It worked. [cont.]
Molly Ball, The Atlantic