McConnell has given Democrats the justification they need to kill the filibuster

Government shutdowns don’t come cheap—the last three shutdowns cost nearly $4 billion, and that doesn’t include all the downstream costs and damage to the lives of ordinary Americans. If civil servants aren’t on the job to process Social Security payments or veterans’ benefits, people will be hurt. Your neighbor with a job at a nearby military installation or federal agency is one of a couple million workers who will get furloughed. If you’re a law enforcement officer or other essential worker in the federal force, you’ll have to show up for work, but you won’t be paid. If you own a coffee shop or diner or florist frequented by those government workers, you lose your customers. The pandemic may have already curtailed your business, but the Deadbeat Republican Party’s shutdown will finish you off.