Democrats Smell Blood in the Water [View all]
https://politicalwire.com/2026/02/06/democrats-smell-blood-in-the-water/
Democrats Smell Blood in the Water
February 6, 2026 at 6:26 am EST By Taegan Goddard
Rachel Bade: If it wasnt clear before, its crystal clear now: Democrats are feeling their power when it comes to ICE enforcement and the looming Department of Homeland Security funding deadline.
Republicans, meanwhile, face a no-win situation: Hold the line and eat the blowback from a shutdown or cave and torch their own base.
Consider this: In the past 48 hours, President Donald Trump has extended an olive branch to the left on immigration enforcement, taking tangible steps to de-escalate. In a rare moment of introspection, the president admitted in to NBC that he should have taken a softer touch with Minnesota. Hes pulled 700 agents out of Minneapolis. And hes now insisting that hell only deploy the feds to cities where governors and mayors ask for help.
But instead of returning the good-faith gesture, Democrats have hardened their position. Wednesday night a full five days into the two-week deadline for a deal they expanded their list of demands to overhaul ICE from three to 10 asks.