On the recent Washington Post article, “Congress can easily avoid shutdowns. Here’s why it doesn’t” editor Fred Barbash writes about the recent government shutdown that occurred this past weekend. In it he touches upon why congress doesn’t avoid shutdowns as easily as they could.
UW Political Science Prof. John Wilkerson and Ph.D. student Andreu Casas, who closely studied the 2013 shutdown for the messages members tried to communicate during and after the event,
"...shutdowns are all about branding for members”. They also stated that, “Those in safe districts, where Obamacare was especially unpopular, used their militance to highlight their die-hard opposition to the ACA.”
In less safe districts where a shutdown might be more unpopular than Obamacare, Republicans highlighted their efforts to resolve the impasse.
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