The Atlantic

The Suicide of a Great Democracy

A shutdown looks like the beginning of the end that Lincoln always knew was possible.
Source: Gary Cameron / Reuters

We had made plans to go to Washington weeks ago, and there was no way to change the trip. The train was almost empty when it pulled into Union Station on Friday night. The next morning, we went out into the dead heart of the city. The government shutdown was in its third week. Nearly all the museums that would have interested the kids were closed, and so were the ones that would have bored them. There was nothing to do except

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