Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer says that there’s only one party that wants to shut the government down. He’s right: it’s only Democrats who won’t allow the Senate a few more weeks at current spending levels to agree on a new budget.

The shutdown highlights three weaknesses undermining the Democrat Party as we head toward next year’s midterm elections.

First, the left wing of the party is running the show. Schumer is terrified of being primaried by New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC); his obstinance is a matter of survival, not conscience.

Second, President Trump has pushed Democrats to burrow into their far-left rabbit holes by occupying the all-powerful center.

Third, Democrats are pushing endlessly to spend more money; voters think that’s a mistake.

Schumer, battered by angry Democrats after he worked with the Republicans in March to keep the government running, learned his lesson. He was accused of “surrendering” to Republicans by Democrats furious at the impotence of their party. After he cast that fateful vote, many on the left pushed for progressive darling Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) to challenge Schumer in the 2028 Senate primary.

This is not an idle threat. In the fury that followed the March face-off over spending, polling by left-leaning Data for Progress found that “Democratic voters nationwide want him to fight harder against President Donald Trump and the Republican agenda.” It also found that Schumer had the “lowest favorability of all New York Democrats" among primary........

© The Hill