Obamacare is not the reason for the shutdown for sure

Don't believe the headlines. The government shutdown is not really about Obamacare.

- Dean Clancy, Tribune News Service

That's just the pretext. The shutdown is a tactic employed by the Democratic congressional leadership to create a high-profile platform from which to oppose President Donald Trump. More dangerously, it’s a political trap for the GOP, aimed at influencing next year’s elections. Healthcare is an issue where voters tend to trust Democrats more than Republicans, because Democrats talk about it a lot more and their “solutions” often sound great (until you look under the hood). And these days, it feels as if health care is the only issue Democrats have left, coming after a yearlong streak of Trumpian victories on everything from border security to energy abundance to tax cuts for families.

This makes it troubling that some Republicans are reportedly discussing a possible “compromise” with senior Democrats, in which they would agree to expand Obamacare in exchange for reopening the government.