Normally, a president overseeing a three-week government shutdown would wade into the fight, using his office to shape public perceptions and press lawmakers for a resolution.
President Donald Trump, we know, is a break from the norm.
Amid the most significant standoff of his second term, Trump has focused on a ceasefire in the Middle East, wrangling leaders in the Russian war on Ukraine, and launching military strikes at boats in the Caribbean.
His absence from the fight is unsurprising, but influential, because it’s likely that any deal will need his approval before it clears Congress.
His level of involvement ...