Imagine being nostalgic for the government shutdown of 1996? It’s referenced enough to warrant a closer look.
First, the economy was robust. The issues were budget balancing and Medicare premiums. Both chambers of Congress were in the hands of the GOP. The incumbent president, Bill Clinton, was up for re-election. He regularly hammered Congress while keeping alive negotiations with his adversaries. Not exactly the Barack Obama modus operandi.
And it helped immeasurably that the Senate majority leader was Bob Dole, a bona fide adult with standing, a centrist agenda and confirmed presidential ambitions for that year. The Republican strategy–as opposed to the current chaotic mess–was vintage old school. It came from the top down. There were no Cruz missiles in position to ultimately torpedo common sense and the common good. Dole, in effect, was able to checkmate House Speaker Newt Gingrich and his acolytes. He pulled the plug on the shutdown.
That was then. This is not. And Mitch McConnell and John Boehner are no Bob Doles.