If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

“If you give a mouse a cookie, he’ll ask for a glass of milk”

Children’s book written by Laura Numeroff

It is one of my favorite classic modern movies, “Air Force One”.  Harrison Ford stars as the President of the United States, travelling on Air Force One from (surprise!!) Russia. His plane is infiltrated by terrorists; they take the President hostage to exchange for their imprisoned leader.

Ford struggles against the intruders; fighting them off again and again.  In a whispered satellite phone conversationwith the Vice President of the United States, played by Glenn Close, they talk about negotiating with terrorists:

            Ford – If you give a mouse a cookie

            Close – He’s gonna want a glass of milk.

Spoiler Alert: The terrorist leader is shot in the prison courtyard as his helicopter to safety hovers above.  Ford kills all the terrorists, saves his family and escapes from a crashing Air Force One.  And the heroic music swells!!!

We are in day thirty-two of a partial government shutdown.  Funding for the Departments of Homeland Security, Treasury, Commerce, Agriculture, Interior, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Justice is stalled.  Employees of those departments are either furloughed or are working without pay. Over 800,000 government workers are affected, and government services such as Food Stamps, tax returns, National Parks and the FBI are impacted.

President Trump has made it clear that he will accept nothing less than $5.7 Billion for building a “wall like barrier” on parts of the Southern Border.  Democrats, led by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, have stated that: “…we will give money for border security, but not $1 for the ‘Wall.’”

The United States government is deadlocked.  Proposals from both sides aren’t getting past the discussion stage, or as the news media seems to love to say; “are dead on arrival.”  After two missed paychecks, Federal workers are desperate to feed their families, and concerned that they will be unable to continue their jobs.

The pressure is growing, on both sides, to solve the problem.  The President seems to be immune to public concerns, focused completely on maintaining the support of his base by delivering on his promised “Wall.” Republicans in the Senate are in a quandary:  feeling the pressure from their constituents to resolve the crisis, but also concerned about the almighty Presidential “tweet” destroying their electoral chances in the future.  

And Democrats are feeling pressure as well.  While polling shows they still have a majority of the nation behind them, it is the Democrats who support the “working folks” including the government workers who are feeling the greatest impact.  The whispers are beginning, “…is stopping ‘Wall’ worth the suffering that will get worse?”  Will the public stay with the Dems, or will they finally grow weary of the spectacle of the “world’s greatest democracy” unable to function.  Who will get the blame?

 Should Democrats offer the $5.7 Billion for “Wall” and get whatever they can in terms of DACA, TPA and immigration reform; then claim credit for ending the shutdown?  Or should they hold fast against the wasteful “Wall” and negotiate a better security system?

There is a third position. Some government workers, some most impacted by the shutdown, and some Democratic Congressmen and Senators; are saying that this form of negotiations needs to end.  This is the third government shutdown in the past two years, and while the others were measured in terms of hours, we have been headed for this kind of long-term showdown for a while.

They are saying that “shutdowns” as a negotiating tool must end.  The United States must find a more effective means of resolving differences and determine that closing part or all of the government must stop being an option. They call for Congress to pass a resolution re-opening the government, without answering questions about “Wall,” put it in front of the President, and if he dares to veto it then override his veto.

The warning: it will not stop even if the Democrats back down.  It will come up again, probably on the next budget resolution.  It is time to realize:  if you give Trump a cookie, he’s gonna want a glass of milk.