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Lawmakers Are Playing The Blame Game During The Government Shutdown

Between #DemocratShutdown, #SchumerShutdown and #TrumpShutdown, who's actually to blame?

By: Casey Mendoza

Posted at 11:45 AM, Jan 20, 2018

and last updated 2018-01-20 11:45:42-05

The government shut down Friday night, and many are looking for someone to blame.

Following the news, President Donald Trump blamed the shutdown on Democrats and tweeted "#DemocratShutdown." White House press secretary Sarah Sanders was more specific, calling it "Schumer Shutdown" in reference to the Senate Democratic Leader. Other Republicans followed suit.

On the other side of the aisle, Democrats have been tweeting out "#TrumpShutdown" — a phrase that soon became the top trending hashtag worldwide. That trend is consistent with a poll from The Washington Post and ABC News. It reports that more Americans surveyed blame Trump and the Congressional GOP, not Democrats, for the shutdown.

That's likely because Republicans are in charge of the government right now, holding both houses of Congress and the White House. Many outlets note that this is the first time a shutdown has happened under those circumstances since the Carter administration.

But spending bills have always been notoriously difficult to pass. In the past four decades, Congress has only been able to pass required appropriations measures on time four times. Government shutdowns have occurred a total 18 times since the current federal budget process was first established in 1976.