Perhaps the most cynical point in the political theater surrounding
the bill’s passage was the eight-hour speech Wednesday by Democratic
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who read the stories of young
undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US when they were
children and have legal status under the Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals (DACA) program. The bill includes no protection for the 800,000
DACA beneficiaries who face possible deportation beginning March 5,
when the DACA program expires.
Pelosi’s stunt, which followed the announcement of a bipartisan
budget agreement in the Senate, was an elaborate attempt to provide
political cover for the Democratic Party, which had already agreed
behind the scenes to provide the votes needed to pass the measure in the
House. In typical fashion, a number of Democrats were allowed to cast
meaningless “no” votes to preserve their “progressive” bona fides for
future elections.
The Democrats have only disdain for those who sought to pressure them
to the left. Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown said of constituents who
appealed to him to vote against the budget deal, “If the suggestion is
if I’m spooked by them or they affect my voting record, the answer is of
course not.”
The passage of the budget bill shows the social character and
political role of the Democratic Party. It is as much a pro-war,
pro-corporate party as its Republican counterpart. It shares the Trump
administration’s goals of increasing “border security,” reducing taxes
on the wealthy, boosting corporate profits and preparing the military
for total war—with its domestic component of internal repression.
-- Patrick Martin, "Democrats and Republicans pass budget to prepare US for war" (WSWS).