VITALI: “The next couple of months are going to be critical. But then it’s also important to remember, 14 days from now, a government shutdown is looming. One Democrat said to me, they feel like they have a mandate from their constituents to shut down the government because Republicans are talking about codifying the cuts that DOGE is making within that continuing resolution. Is there a mandate? Is there this this difficult moral place for Democrats to be in where they want the government to be functioning, but just not like this? I mean, how would you advise them on this?”
Johnson: “Yeah. You know, it is a hard position to be in because Democrats have been talking about the harm, the irreparable harm that we will see if some of these cuts go through. And yet, at the same time, in order for a lot of voters to fully understand what Elon Musk and Donald Trump are doing, people are unfortunately going to have to feel some of that. And the only way that that happens is if the shutdown happens or if this bill is passed with these Medicaid cuts. And so, Democrats are in a peculiar position. The key piece is to be able to message this well, correctly, because Donald Trump can spin a narrative very quickly and his base starts to believe it. But there is an opportunity now, with so many of Republican voters upset with some of these cuts that impact their daily lives, that if Democrats get the messaging right, whether or not the government shuts down, they could win on that. And that could be helpful to galvanize voters on both sides of the aisle to start showing up and pushing back.”