Newly Victorious Democrats Seize Initiative, Failure

Responding to an overwhelming sweep of the off-year elections, Senate Democrats today pressed their advantage by giving into Republican demands to end the government shutdown without extending healthcare subsidies.

"We wanted to wait until the election to see what the people had to say," said one senator who spoke on condition of anonymity. "And now that they have, we can ignore them."

The move has drawn approval from across the party, with some calling the recent party unity and optimism "uncomfortable" and "off-brand". "We can finally get back to what matters: intra-party fighting," wrote one commenter on X.

The eight Democratic senators that voted to end the shutdown were quick to add that Sen. John Thune (R) had promised a vote on healthcare subsidies and some amazing waterfront property in his home state of South Dakota.