Did you even notice? Did anything in your life change? The federal government was partially shut down for 35 days, but was your life at all affected?
According to a Fox News poll, 66 percent of the American people considered themselves unaffected by the shutdown, but you would never have known that from the gnashing of teeth and rending of garments on cable news
The fact most Americans weren’t affected is a good thing; the federal government should not play an omnipresent role in our daily lives. Unfortunately, the massive growth of the bureaucratic deep state, Congress soaking up responsibilities best left to state and local governments, and the ever-expanding role of the presidency have combined to make our federal government an overbearing behemoth.
Rather than 50 laboratories of democracy, running their own states the way those voters think is right, we have in many ways accepted a coastal ruling elite, set on siccing a big, top down, invasive government on the rest of the country. And yes, the blame for this must include many Republicans.