The Schumer Shutdown is still dragging on, and the question isn’t if it will end but whether Democrats can afford to keep it going. After three weeks of blocking the continuing resolution, Senate Democrats now face a growing dilemma: how much hardship are their voters willing to tolerate before demanding their leaders finally end their filibuster?
Democrats thought public opinion would be on their side, but that’s not the case. Recent polling shows growing voter frustration with Democrats over the shutdown. Last week, 39% blamed Trump and Republicans, and 33% blamed Democrats, a gap of six points. Now the gap has narrowed, as fewer Americans are willing to share the blame equally, dropping from 23% to 20% in one week. In other words, public sentiment is trending against Democrats.
And it’s only going to get worse for them. Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought is really going to pull the plug on some of the Democrats’ pet projects.
"The Democrat shutdown has drained the Army Corps of Engineers' ability to manage billions of dollars in projects," Vought explained in a post on X. "The Corps will be immediately pausing over $11 billion in lower-priority projects & considering them for cancellation, including projects in New York, San Francisco, Boston, and Baltimore."
This was not random cost-cutting. More than half of the paused funding is tied to projects in New York, home to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Other casualties include a San Francisco pier replacement and a New York City wastewater treatment system reconstruction. An OMB spokesperson made the strategy explicit, noting that many targeted projects sit in sanctuary cities and that taxpayer dollars should not be subsidizing infrastructure in states led by governors ignoring federal law.
Recommended: This Photo Should End Zohran Mamdani’s Campaign
This shouldn’t surprise Democrats one bit. Trump had telegraphed this move weeks earlier, promising to close down Democratic programs and pet projects if the shutdown dragged on. Senate Democrats have now filibustered the continuing resolution ten times, and now Trump is following through, which means that Democrats are stuck playing a losing hand. They are demanding permanent extensions of expanded Obamacare subsidies and a rollback of Medicaid reforms from Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill that prevent illegals from getting free health care.
The political calculation here is fascinating. Democrats believe they can rally their base by framing this fight by blaming Trump and the GOP until they cave. Trump isn’t playing by their rules, though. Trump’s strategy is simple but ruthless: he forces Democrats to defend not just their policies but their willingness to hurt their own voters. Every stalled project in a Democratic city is another reminder of Schumer’s refusal to negotiate. The longer they hold out, the more they appear to care about fighting Trump over funding the government, a losing stance they know is politically dangerous.
How much longer can Democrats last? Likely not much, unless they’re willing to take serious hits in the 2026 midterms. Trump has shown he’s comfortable with a prolonged shutdown and can wield his authority decisively. Democrats are running out of leverage, time, and excuses for blocking a clean continuing resolution.
