this post was submitted on 30 Sep 2025
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[–] sp3ctr4l@lemmy.dbzer0.com 63 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (3 children)

Grover Norquist, who founded Americans for Tax Reform in 1985 at the urging of President Reagan, declared in 2001: “I don’t want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub.”

https://theconversation.com/the-shutdown-drowning-government-in-the-bathtub-111333

They are ideologically opposed to the government doing basically anything other than police and military duties, and having the bare minimum legal system required to facilitate criminal convictions for the poor, and the contract emforcement of private business.

Basically, they want the level of government that exists in Night City from Cyberpunk 2077, but probably without mass transit or even public roads.

This is what Rush Limbaugh's ditto hesds have been told they want for about 40 years, and now they are just doing it.

You can prosecute people for thought crimes snd not being the right sexuality or religion or skin color with this, so, that's all good with them.

[–] triptrapper@lemmy.world 4 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

I would argue they also want the government to collect money from taxpayers and distribute it to the rich in the form of subsidies and contracts.

[–] sp3ctr4l@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago)

I mean, in practical terms, yes, but they will argue amongst themselves as to exactly the specifics, or if they go full libertarian and axe as much of that as possible.

See the current situation of US Farmers.

Basically all their direct subsidies have been decimated, SNAP got decimated and that was a huge indirect subsidy for farmers.

They will probably keep subsidizing the fuck out of oil and gas, but when you get to full fascism, it becomes much less formal and much more arbitrary, impulsive, less well defined, more 'what have you done for me lately' style corruption.

[–] ZombieMantis@lemmy.world 1 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

I'm aware of this, it's just that shutting the federal government down right now wouldn't seem to help in that goal. They're in the middle of a ramp-up of ICE & federal troop deployments across our cities. That's going to get a lot harder it those soldiers aren't getting a paycheck, no?

Sitting on it, I think the claims that they'll fire workers, all the other vague claims they've made, is all just a bluff to get Democrats to cave-into their demands, weakening the opposition and legitimizing their deconstruction.

[–] sp3ctr4l@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago) (1 children)

As best I can tell, ICE / DHS considers 93% of its employees to be essentially personnel and has said themselves almost all of them will still be paid.

Because they are 'critical law enforcement.'

Beyond that, the Trump admin has already proven they have no problem illegally withholding and redirecting funds.

So... regardless of who is actually responsible for a shutdown, we are existing in a de facto dictatorship unless some other element of the government actually does something to stop this.

They literally do not care about laws.

Coincidentally, I'll just here note that one of the monikers of the AntiChrist is 'the lawless one'.

Not that I am religious anymore, nor do I think most Republicans actually read their Bibles, but it is kind of funny.

But uh yes, it is obviously a bluff, they will blame everything on Dems and illegal immigrants and the queer no matter what actually happens, because they are literally psychotically delusional.

[–] ZombieMantis@lemmy.world 3 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

That seems like the best analysis I've seen. In general, you can always assume behind every action is "The worst" as their goals and intentions.

[–] sp3ctr4l@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 11 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago)

Well thank you lol.

Yes, this, making internet comments, this is why I got an Econ degree and a Poli Sci degree, apparently.

Would have been neat if anyone listened to anything I was saying, in a professional or personal capacity, for the last 20ish years, but uh, nope, nope, so now we get fascism and economic collapse, and I get to be way, way too sullen to eek out an 'I told you so'.

Holy shit this all sucks so much.

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 0 points 14 hours ago

Police...but not corruption or fraud.