The Washington Post editorial board wasted no time in blasting Democrats for falling into the shutdown trap.
Just minutes after the federal government’s shutdown deadline at 12:01 a.m. ET on Wednesday, the Jeff Bezos-owned newspaper’s editorial board called out the Democratic Party.
“The Democratic Party shut off any potential escape valve to avoid a shutdown,” wrote the editorial board shortly after midnight.
The “escape valve” refers to a proposal reportedly floated by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to his caucus, suggesting a spending bill that would keep the government open for seven to ten days while negotiations with President Trump and Republicans continued.
Democrats rejected Schumer’s proposal, and the Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX), responded on X by posting, “Hell no.”
“Left-wing Democrats, like the Freedom Caucus before them, enter this shutdown in a position of weakness,” The Post wrote, referring to the Democrats’ decision to reject Schumer’s proposal and embrace a shutdown.
Democrats are refusing to support the Republican funding bill unless it includes continued funding for the Affordable Care Act and reverses cuts to Medicaid from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Although the Republican-controlled House passed the bill, Republicans do not have the 60-vote majority needed in the Senate.
The Washington Post warned that the shutdown will give President Donald Trump “extraordinary authority to choose which agencies to close, what spending to prioritize, and even which government workers to lay off.”
Hell no.We don’t need a delay and a pinky promise to negotiate — we need a deal that keeps the government open and saves health care for Americans. I’m in D.C. ready to vote for that.Republicans have refused to come to the table for months. Why would Democrats acting weak… https://t.co/DqQQu3aJpN
— Congressman Greg Casar (@RepCasar) September 29, 2025
Trump has already threatened to lay off “a lot of people” and told reporters, “They’re going to be Democrats.” The shutdown means that hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be furloughed, and some in essential services will work without pay.
“Expect him to follow through in a way that maximizes pain for Democrats, who will probably face pressure from their allies in government labor unions after employees are fired and others are forced to work without pay,“ The Post wrote.
Trump’s last term included the longest government shutdown in history. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the 35-day shutdown in 2018 cost the U.S. economy $3 billion, mainly because federal workers were unable to spend money.
“So chances are slim that the two parties could ever come to terms that Democratic activists would view as a decisive victory. Yet the party’s base wants them to fight anyway, even if it means holding the government hostage,” the editorial board of Bezos’ paper wrote, noting that a health care compromise, if reached, may include conservative priorities.
The word “hostage” has been used by many Republicans to describe the shutdown. “FACT: Schumer led a shutdown to hold the government hostage for a $1.5 trillion liberal payout,” Rep. Nick Langworthy (R-N.Y) wrote on X. Senate Majority Leader John Thune also said on NBC, “Democrats have done here is take the federal government as a hostage.”
In what appears to be a blame game over who is responsible for the shutdown, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer released a statement saying, “Donald Trump and Republicans have now shut down the federal government because they do not want to protect the healthcare of the American people.”
“Republicans haven’t been afraid of hardball politics, and they have seemingly suffered no meaningful consequences for it,” wrote The Post editorial board, before adding, “So why not play their own game, especially when Democratic voters are eager to see elected officials stand up to Trump?”
Schumer and Jeffries said that “Democrats remain ready to find a bipartisan path forward to reopen the government in a way that lowers costs and addresses the Republican healthcare crisis,” but only with a “credible partner.”
The Senate will vote again on Wednesday on the same two funding bills—one from Republicans and one from Democrats—that failed to pass and led to the government shutdown.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he would keep the Senate in session through the weekend if Democrats do not advance the Republican-backed bill.
“The most likely outcome is that Democrats will come to regret having just walked into a trap,” The Washington Post concluded in its Wednesday editorial.
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