Michael Barbaro

So why are people mad at him?

Because he's the leader, right?

The frustration is Chuck Schumer, if he was really the leader, would keep his party in line until he decided that the fact that he didn't vote with them, sure, that means he's not supporting ending the shutdown right now, but he's not actually leading and keeping them in line sufficiently to have the fight that they want to have.

Got it.

So I just want to observe where we are.

And it's a really interesting place.

Democrats who want to be president

are railing against this deal that was achieved by fellow Democrats.

That's how much they want a fight right now against President Trump.

Senators like John Ossoff, in a very purple place,

They're fighting this deal to end the shutdown the way that it's probably going to be ending.

That's how much he wants a fight against President Trump right now.

The majority of Senate Democrats are voting against this deal struck by their own fellow Democrats.

That's how much the whole party wants to be fighting President Trump right now as a kind of a brand message.

And that brings me back to what our colleague Carl Hulse said.

said to me the night that the shutdown began 40-something days ago.

He argued that the Trump era has fundamentally changed the Democratic Party.

In a sense, it's radicalized it.

And the party wants to say as loudly as possible, we are not the Democratic Party of those eight moderates left.

who did this deal.