Trump and White House Staff Showed Laughing in Photo after Shutdown

Trump and White House staff shown smiling on Jan 20, 2018
hours after the government shutdown. Official White House
photo by Joyce N. Boghosian.

For President* Trump and Republicans, their shutdown is "kind of cool," (Mick Mulvaney, director of White House Office of Management and Budget).

Last year Trump said several times he was in favor of a shutdown, calling the shutdown "good" and politically advantageous for Republicans:

May 2, 2017:  Trump writes: "Our country needs a good 'shutdown' in September (2017) to fix mess!" (CNN), (Twitter).

either elect more Republican Senators in 2018 or change the rules now to 51%. Our country needs a good "shutdown" in September to fix mess!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 2, 2017

November 30, 2017: President Donald Trump has told confidants that he thinks a shutdown of the federal government might be positive for him politically, according to The Washington Post, (CNBC).

Why are Trump and White House staff smiling in the White House photo released just hours after the shutdown?

They got what they wanted, and it's no skin off of them, they beleive; in fact they believe the shutdown helps Republicans.

Trump and Republicans are playing games and enjoying themselves at our country's expense.

Meanwhile, the White House is embarrassing itself again in an effort to show Trump hard at work leading the fight for a solution to their shutdown.

As usual, the message is mixed and unconvincing.

White House portrays Donald Trump hard at work during government shutdown

I too conduct most of my most important work with a phone in my hand and nothing on my desk, while staring vacantly off into space https://t.co/XrYVv3YEae

— janu-erin (@morninggloria) January 20, 2018

White House emails: “Photos of President Donald J. Trump working in the White House during the shutdown he is responsible for” pic.twitter.com/TcmJrSuvDc

— Antonio Bonanza: more myth than man (@AntonioBonanza) January 21, 2018