[Stingray51]

The President cannot spend a single dime without it having gotten through Congress. Blame it on “mandatory programs”, “baseline budgeting” or agreed budget deals, the fact remains that Congress has the power of the purse. But this is a power that the GOPe is afraid to use for political reasons and/or does not want to because they actually agree with the spending.

[Ohioan]

You nailed it. Instead of the weak apology of the National Review article, the naked truth is that Speaker Ryan--who now arrogantly wants Trump to compromise principle--forced through an outrageous budget, late last year, which should clearly have been rejected. You cannot simply agree to fund unconstitutional idiocy simply to get along.

What is intolerable is the "whipped cur" variety of Republican, who either through cowardice, an inferiority complex, or actual perfidy, is unwilling to engage a President who refuses any compromise on his agenda, lest such Republicans get blamed for a shutdown, directly attributable to anyone with a mind to reason, to the intransigence of the President.