America Is Closed. Please Try Later.

Shutdowns aren’t glitches; they’re the design. If Democrats fail to unify and deliver in 2026, America won’t just stumble into chaos—it will institutionalize it.

Guest article by Michael Cohen. Follow him on Substack for more by clicking here.

Washington is about to turn off the lights, and the people holding the switch couldn’t care less. A government shutdown isn’t looming; it’s practically guaranteed. Trump skipped town for a golf tournament, Congress is on recess until the very day the shutdown begins, and no one seems in a rush to stop the clock from running out. The message to the American people is as clear as it is cruel: you’ll pay the price, not them.

Here’s the reality: a shutdown isn’t some symbolic squabble over “big government” or “small government.” It’s lost jobs. It’s families staring at their bills, wondering when the next paycheck will come. It’s federal workers furloughed, contractors frozen out, small businesses that rely on federal projects shuttered. And it’s not just bureaucrats in Washington; it’s waiters who won’t see tourist dollars because the national parks are closed, nurses who won’t get reimbursements because Medicaid funding is in limbo, and parents who can’t access childcare programs that depend on federal dollars. The dominoes are real.

Yet while Americans stand on the edge of the cliff, both parties are busy digging trenches. Democrats are holding the line on health care—Medicaid, Obamacare subsidies, protections against Trump’s arbitrary withholding of funds. Republicans, meanwhile, are content to let the whole house burn down rather than admit government should actually serve people. And Trump? He’s grinning from the golf cart, telling reporters: “If it has to shut down, it has to shut down.” Translation: the pain is yours, not his.

The cost here isn’t just economic. It’s institutional. Every shutdown chips away at the American experiment. Our tripartite system of checks and balances—the very thing that prevents authoritarianism—bleeds a little more each time government grinds to a halt. What happens when the public begins to accept shutdowns as the new normal? Chaos replaces governance. And guess who thrives in chaos? Autocrats, strongmen, cult leaders in red ties who convince their base that dysfunction is democracy.

This is why Democrats can’t afford to lose the plot. Yes, fight for health care. Yes, push back against Trump’s weaponized Department of Justice and his tariffs that destabilize alliances. But don’t forget the larger fight: 2026. The midterms aren’t just about accountability; they’re about survival. A cohesive message, disciplined and relentless, is the only way to claw back real power. If we stumble, if we fracture, if we indulge in purity tests while Trump weaponizes chaos, then we’ve already lost.

Think about it: while Democrats debate the fine print of subsidies, Republicans are running a scorched-earth strategy designed to wear us down. Every day the government is dark, trust in institutions dims. That’s the real GOP play—not fiscal responsibility, not policy, but corrosion. And if Americans lose faith that government can work, they stop showing up to vote. That vacuum is exactly what Republicans are banking on.

So what do we do? We talk. We confront. We argue. We hammer home one singular message after another: Democrats are the party of function, Republicans are the party of dysfunction. Democrats are the party of health care, Republicans are the party of cruelty. Democrats are the party of keeping the lights on, Republicans are the party of locking the doors. It’s that simple, and that stark.

Running away—into our ideological corners, into Twitter wars, into circular firing squads—won’t save us. This is the moment to unify, not splinter. We must remember what’s at stake: not just winning seats, but restoring balance to a system that is slipping toward collapse. We can’t let shutdowns, Comey indictments, or Trump’s golf outings become the new normal. Normal is stability, accountability, functionality. Anything less is surrender.

This is the moment where Democrats either step up or step aside. We can’t afford bickering over crumbs while Republicans eat the whole cake. We can’t afford to fracture while they thrive in chaos. If we fail to unify now, the cost won’t just be jobs or paychecks; it will be the very system of checks and balances that holds this democracy together.

2026 isn’t just another midterm. It’s the firewall. It’s the last line before dysfunction becomes permanent, before shutdowns become standard, before Republicans cement chaos as the operating system of America.

So let’s be clear: Democrats must be the party that keeps the lights on, that restores faith, that shows Americans government can still work. Anything less is surrender. And surrender is exactly what Republicans want.

So, keep your eye on the prize. Speak with one voice. Fight like hell. Because if we don’t, the next shutdown won’t just close the parks—it will close the door on democracy itself.

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