With his threat to shut down the federal government unless he receives funding for his border wall, President Donald Trump is employing a tactic that is unpopular to advance a goal that may be even more unpopular.
Trump’s threats — and the muted public resistance to them from GOP congressional leaders — offer the latest evidence that the party’s drubbing in the midterm election has not changed the White House’s fundamental strategic calculus.
Though the proposed border wall faces widespread opposition among all the groups in the electorate that powered the big Democratic gains in the House last month, and government shutdowns historically have alienated a broad range of the public, both the end and the means remain popular among the President’s core supporters. CONT.
Ronald Brownstein, CNN