This new reality means nose-to-nose confrontation until the other side blinks. The consequence of blinking could mean political consequences, mainly a backlash from the base.

Maybe. But there are also plenty of people who are weary of the new politics as usual.

"Another day, another government created crisis. Ho hum. The first thing to do when digging a hole too deep is to stop digging. If the simple minded can't understand, then (sic) need to suffer," Phil Todd wrote on the CNN Politics Facebook page.