The real reason Democrats forced a government shutdown

What explains our government’s latest act of self-sabotage? | Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images Uncle Sam has closed up shop.  The federal government shut down on Wednesday, as Congress failed to extend its annual appropriations. Now, food will go uninspected, Superfund sites uncleaned, and IRS helplines unanswered. Millions of Americans will suffer from disrupted government services, hundreds of thousands of federal workers are liable to miss paychecks, and economic growth will likely slow.  What explains our government’s latest act of self-sabotage? At first glance, the shutdown seems to