Four weeks into the Schumer Shutdown, there is one talking point Democrats have consistently relied on to absolve themselves of responsibility. Turn on the news or go on social media and you’ll hear the same line echoed by everyone on the left who weighs in: “Republicans control the House, Senate, and White House, so they own the shutdown." It’s a convenient narrative, and they’ve repeated it so often that some people might actually believe it.
The problem is that it’s a complete fairy tale.
“Republican leaders are still trying to blame Democrats even though they control the House, Senate, and the White House,” Jimmy Kimmel said earlier this month.
“Republicans control the White House, Senate, and House,” said Congressman Tim “Sarah” McBride. “This shutdown is on them.”
Republicans control the House.
— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) October 16, 2025
Republicans control the Senate.
Republicans control the White House.
This is their shutdown.
And so on and so on.
Yes, Republicans hold majorities in both chambers and the presidency, but the Senate doesn’t operate on simple majorities when it comes to ending debate. Democrats are filibustering the Continuing Resolution, and Republicans only have 52 votes. They need 60 to invoke cloture and move forward. So while Democrats stand on their soap boxes claiming the GOP has all the power, they’re quietly wielding the filibuster like a weapon to keep the government closed. The irony is thick enough to cut with a knife.
If Democrats want to keep insisting that the GOP has the power to end this shutdown unilaterally, maybe it’s time for Republicans to call that bluff. The nuclear option, that parliamentary maneuver Democrats have used repeatedly when it suited their purposes, is sitting right there on the table. It only takes a simple majority to change Senate rules, and Republicans could pull the trigger tomorrow if they wanted to.
Here’s where it gets interesting.
Democrats have shown zero hesitation about nuking the filibuster when they needed something passed. They did it for executive branch nominations under Harry Reid. If Republicans made a credible threat to eliminate it entirely, Democrats would suddenly find themselves in a bind. They wouldn’t want the GOP to have free rein to pass legislation without any minority party safeguards. That could cause them to cave.
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But there’s another possibility as well. Democrats could call their bluff. Personally, I’m not a fan of the Democrats tactics, but I also know that the next time Democrats have the House, Senate, and White House, they’ll axe the filibuster faster than Joe Biden tripping down the stairs. But Republicans could proceed with a temporary nuclear option. Since changing the rules only requires a simple majority, Republicans could vote to eliminate the filibuster, pass the continuing resolution, and then vote to restore the filibuster the very next day. It would be parliamentary jujitsu, using Democrats’ own talking points against them. Every time a Democrat or one of their cheerleaders in the media insists that Republicans control everything and therefore own this shutdown, they’re backing themselves into a corner. It’s a trap of their own making wrapped in a taunt, and eventually it might snap shut on them.
The beauty of this strategy is that Democrats would have no good response. If they complain about Republicans using the nuclear option, they completely undermine their most prevalent talking point about the shutdown and GOP control. They can’t have it both ways. Either Republicans have the power to end the shutdown or they don’t. And if the GOP actually follows through, they get the added bonus of being able to say they were the ones who ended the shutdown, not the Democrats who have been obstructing for nearly a month.
Republicans have been on the defensive long enough. Democrats have been filibustering while simultaneously blaming the majority party for their own obstruction, and the media has largely let them get away with it. Maybe it’s time to stop playing defense and start playing hardball. If Democrats want to pretend Republicans have all the power, perhaps Republicans should show them what that actually looks like.
