Re- the Shutdown, my 2 cents:

[snot]

5. Could I just add:

If one is talking to fellow Dems, sure, the emergency fund is the best solution in the short term; and I hope that even our current SCOTUS would agree that the refusal to use it is unlawful.

But as far as I know, the main reason the Dems haven't approved the new budget is because it slashes the ACA subsidies -- am I wrong about that? -- and thus, from the point of view of Independents or Republicans who might be reachable, it's a simple matter of logic that if the Dems in Congress caved on slashing the ACA subsidies, the the stalemate would end – so from their point of view, the Dems are just as responsible for the shut-down as the Republicans.

The difference that I think could matter to them is the reason why the Dems are holding out and the Republicans are refusing to compromise.