Shutdown Fights Energize Democrats, but Strategists Say Voters Want Economic Answers

Democrats have forced two historic shutdowns, but strategists say the strategy lacks a message on cost of living.

The U.S. Capitol during the 34th day of the government shutdown in Washington on Nov. 3, 2025. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times

Over the past six months, Democrats have done something strategists say their own voters had been demanding: They picked a fight and refused to back down.

The party held firm through a 43-day government shutdown last fall—the longest in U.S. history at the time—and is doing it again in the ongoing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding standoff, which reached its 55th day on April 9 with no resolution in sight.