Scott Jennings takes a victory lap after his shutdown prediction about Democrats comes true

WASHINGTON, DC: CNN’s resident conservative pundit Scott Jennings couldn’t resist patting himself on the back this week after his crystal-ball moment from just days earlier turned out to be spot-on.

Jennings had predicted that Democrats would quickly reopen the government once they had wrapped up their elections.

Scott Jennings says Democrats stalled shutdown for political gain

The right-wing commentator wasted no time taking his victory lap on X, posting a clip of his CNN exchange with host Abby Phillips. "Right again. Called it on Tuesday night. Dems could’ve done this deal 35 days ago. Purely political. They hurt people for nothing other than politics," he captioned the post.

During his appearance on CNN 'NewsNight,' Jennings predicted that the shutdown would miraculously end right after the votes were counted. "Well, I'm sure Democrats will be more than happy to open the government now. The election's over," he told anchor Phillips. "I mean, part of the reason they shut it down is to get through tonight."

Phillips pushed back, insisting Republicans had no leverage left and voters were blaming Trump’s party. “Look, I don't see what is the incentive for Democrats to back down when voters are basically saying Trump's not doing enough. It's the Republicans' fault,” she countered. “And then they basically handed the keys in the last election, in this past election, to the Democrats. Where's the leverage?”

Jennings didn’t flinch. “Again, these are blue states electing Democrats. Not a shock. Democrats clearly wanted this shutdown to get through Election Day,” he shot back. Then came the kicker: “The unions, the air traffic controllers, the government employee unions are desperate to get the government back open. They're feeling a little bit of internal heat. But again, the election's now over. I'm sure tomorrow morning phones will start ringing and it'll be open soon enough.”  

Democrats reopen government after major election victories

Democrats did, in fact, reopen the government shortly after a spate of election victories. In Virginia, Abigail Spanberger clinched the governorship as Democrats took control of the state legislature. In New Jersey, Mikie Sherrill also won the governor’s mansion.

In New York City, Zohran Mamdani made history as the city’s first Muslim and first South Asian mayor. Out west, California’s Proposition 50 passed, giving Democrats an edge in the national redistricting fight.

As predicted by Jennings, the shutdown logjam finally broke after a grueling 40 days, shortly following the election wins. Moderate Democrats stepped up and delivered the votes needed to pass a funding measure in the Senate.

For weeks, Senate Democrats had resisted the Republican-led bill, watching 14 previous votes crash and burn. But once Election Day was behind them, eight Democrats crossed the aisle and joined Republicans to hit the 60-vote threshold needed to reopen the government.

The deal wasn’t everything Democrats wanted, particularly on extending expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies. However, they did secure a promise for a future vote.

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