Day 734: Trump plays checkers, Pelosi plays chess

Dared to cancel the State of the Union, she did just that.

On January 3, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) invited Donald Trump to speak from the House floor for his State of the Union. However, on January 16, she informed him that, due to security concerns, if the government shutdown continued past the January 29 speech date, alternative arrangements should be made.

There wasn’t an overt threat in her second letter, but the message was clear: resolve the shutdown or the State of the Union wouldn’t be delivered on the House floor.

Today, apparently thinking she’d blink, Trump dared Pelosi to cancel the speech.

A few hours later, she did.

The White House, thinking Pelosi was bluffing, was reportedly stunned by her letter that informed Trump the House would not be taking up a concurrent resolution to allow for a speech until the government was reopened. The Trump team is now scrambling to figure out a solution in case the government isn’t reopened, whether it’s a speech from the Oval Office or a campaign-style event.

Pelosi knows how stuck Trump is in an unpopular (among Americans and his own party), self-engineered shutdown . She is also well aware how much he values publicity. Pelosi sees what’s on the line for Democrats if they give in and fund Trump’s border wall.

By undercutting the thing he wants — needs — the most, Pelosi retains a substantial measure of power, above and beyond what she normally wields. If Trump wants the pomp of delivering a State of the Union from the House floor, he’s going to have to capitulate.

734 days in, 728 to go

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