On the topic of government shutdowns, the two parties have switched sides. For the better part of 15 years, it's been Republicans using shutdowns while Democrats pushed against them. Now, we have the opposite: Democrats oppose clean funding bills, calling them pure fascism. Republicans are sitting on a clean funding resolution, with no changes.

In truth, regardless of the noise surrounding this, the move to shut down the government is an exercise in managing coalitions for Democrats. Their base is losing touch with reality and demanding blood, quite literally these days, for opposition to Trump. Democratic leadership has no choice but to push for a shutdown.

If you think that's hyperbole, I'd turn you to the news. Axios reported back in July that the Democratic base was livid with its leadership. Members of Congress were being told they needed to "get shot" as part of their anti-Trump resistance.

That triggered a spate of Senators and Representatives throwing themselves into dumb situations with ICE and other federal agencies, attempting to do that very thing. The Democratic mindset that they live in an autocratic society is truly only in their demented minds. That's why so many of them have struggled with the Charlie Kirk assassination, attacks on ICE facilities, and more.

The moral framework to justify these attacks has been in place for months. They've convinced themselves that they're bizarrely opposing modern Hitler. That brings us to the government funding showdown.

As Axios and other outlets have reported for months, Democrats have wanted a government shutdown. The base that demanded Democrats get arrested wants them to "play hardball." Democratic leadership understands that this shutdown, like every single one before it, will lead nowhere.

But that's not the point. Democrats must claim to win something in this exchange, or fight to satisfy their base. Pew Research polled both parties and found Democrats hate their Congressional leaders the most, with Chuck Schumer having a whopping 50% unfavorable rating, far out-pacing any other Congressional leader.

Republicans have joked, semi-seriously, that this government shutdown is about Schumer avoiding a primary from Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez in the House. That could partially be true, but his main issue is keeping the Democratic Party from coming apart at the seams.

The violence we're witnessing terrifies Democratic leadership as much as anyone else. They understand the hatred for people like Charlie Kirk extends to Democratic leadership who don't oppose Trump strongly enough. Schumer is already in hot water with the Democratic base for not opposing Trump strongly enough back in the spring.

Schumer got read the riot act from the base for "caving" to Trump. That fury was real, despite Schumer having no real leverage in the situation, except for the threat of a government shutdown that would, over time, only hurt Democrats.

If you don't believe that, note the following: Before any shutdown occurred, three Democratic Senators broke ranks with leadership to vote with Republicans. Senatoros Catherine Cortez Masto, John Fetterman, and Agnus King all face purple state dynamics and are breaking early.

That means Republicans only have to break five more Democrats. John Thune's accurate assessment is that all the pressure is on the Democrats. He can squeeze, forcing vote after vote, until they break. As Americans watch Democrats keep the government closed in continuous votes, while Trump wrecks parts of the government Democrats love, the pressure will mount.

With purple state Democrats already breaking, that releases all the pressure off Republicans. No one in Republican leadership is making a serious attempt to win back Rand Paul. He can vote against the legislation all he wants, because he doesn't matter in this exercise.

Thune told Fox News the same thing: "He blamed Democratic leaders for capitulating to pressure from the 'political left,' as well as a lack of 'an identity.' 'I think [Democrats] are stuck, and they don't have an identity right now, and this is just an example that they really don't know what they're doing ... We're going to have another vote tomorrow, and they'll probably try and block it again, but I think people are going to start cracking because they're going to realize this is a losing hand."

We're in the middle of a Democratic shutdown because this is what the Democratic base wants. The blame is clear because they've openly called for this, and Democratic Senators faced with that reality are balking at what the base demands.

It's a no-win scenario, not much different from the spring funding fights where radical leftists claimed Schumer "caved." We're watching a Democratic base divorce itself from reality and demand the impossible from its leadership, and then get even angrier when an idiotic temper tantrum gets nowhere.

It's not like there's no future ahead. I generally think Democrats have good odds of retaking the House and putting a dent in the Republican lead in the Senate. Midterms are usually good for the party out of power. But for Democrats, every major political fight is a stand where the fate of the universe is constantly at stake.

They can't set correct expectations, get mad when those unrealistic expectations fail to materialize, and resort to more drastic measures. We're going to end up in the same place we always do: a clean CR passes and the party demanding a shutdown gets punished by polls.

And the part of this that the Democrats have not factored into anything: no one in the conservative base cares if the government shuts down or people get fired. That's all buttercream icing on the cake for us.

Democrats are playing chicken with a steamroller. Place your bets accordingly.