The Hill News

As Republicans, Democrats, and President Obama try to negotiate over continuing resolutions and the federal budget, both sides are pursuing partisan strategies that risk a government shutdown. Similar to a game a chicken, both sides are daring the other to hold out and risk a shutdown or to compromise and lose points with the electoral base. However, both the history of previous government shutdowns and contemporary polling highlight the precarious position for both sides.

The lessons from the government shutdowns with Clinton and the Republicans illustrate the potential risk to both sides. In 1995-1996, the public initially sided with congressional Republicans, but ultimately sided with President Clinton. Although the shutdown did not substantially hurt the Republicans in the subsequent election, it did hurt approval of their leader, Newt Gingrich.

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