Democrats Express Fear of Far Left as Shutdown Rages

In newly reported remarks, some Democrat insiders are blaming the far Left for the failure of Senate Democrats to vote to end the federal government shutdown, now nearly three weeks old.

“People are going to get hammered,” one Democrat senator, who requested anonymity, told The Hill, adding: “Are there enough Democrats to join Republicans to reopen the government? Not in the near term.” 

Another person close to the Democrat caucus invoked language associated with the French Revolution to describe their predicament, stating to The Hill that there would be enough support from Democrat members of the Senate to reopen the government “if people were not terrified of getting the guillotine.”

The remarks appear to support the contention of House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., initiated the shutdown for partisan gain.

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“[Schumer] is recognizing the reality of the political winds changing in the state of New York. As I mentioned yesterday, they are likely to elect a Marxist to be the mayor of New York City, and Chuck Schumer is terrified by that,” Johnson told reporters back on Oct. 7.

The new Democrat remarks come after the virulent “No Kings” protests this past Saturday, at which millions of left-wing activists came out in force to deride the Trump administration and its supporters. The Daily Signal attended one such demonstration held in Washington. Protesters held signs comparing President Donald Trump and his supporters to Nazis.

The Daily Signal interviewed one protester who carried a sign that read, “Your vote is your voice, so scream.” She described conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated on Sept. 10 while speaking on a college campus in Utah, as “a piece of garbage.”

“I am so tired of people saying, ‘Oh, but you know, it’s a terrible thing.’ No, Hitler is dead. I’m glad Hitler’s dead. Evil people have no place in my world,” the protester continued. 

The anti-Kirk activist’s strident remarks come after the State Department revoked the visas of several foreign nationals who had celebrated or justified the killing of Kirk. The Turning Point USA founder on Oct. 14 was posthumously awarded the highest civilian medal by Trump, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The federal government shutdown began on Oct. 1 after Senate Democrats blocked passage of a House Republican bill in the Senate that would have kept the government open. 

Two Democrats broke ranks before the Oct. 1 deadline to fund the government. They were Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada. They were joined by Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, who is an independent but caucuses with the Democrats.

Meanwhile, the toll of the government shutdown continues unabated. Thousands of federal workers have been furloughed without pay, and essential federal personnel, including members of the military, are forced to work without compensation.

They will receive back pay whenever the shutdown ends, though members of Congress are paid during a government shutdown.