Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-WY), and Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) following a Republican policy luncheon at the US Capitol Building on October 15, in Washington, DC. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Democrats are talking to their voters who are desperate to fight. Republicans rarely reach beyond their base. And President Donald Trump, supposedly the world’s greatest dealmaker, is tuned out.

This Washington stasis explains why no end is in sight to a government shutdown now tied for the second-longest ahead of Trump’s expected departure for Asia at the end of the week for summits. There’s no sign he’ll emulate his first predecessor, President Barack Obama, who canceled a tour of the region in 2013 because of a similar

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