You don't know that. With the willing and eager cooperation of the press, some of the problems of the shutdown are being wildly exaggerated while polls show most people hardly notice.
The economic gain you speak of was largely created by Trump.
5 billion is a start. Nothing wrong with a start.
You're in denial,
@Emjay. If you're an air traveler, you've already noticed. If you're a federal contractor, you've already noticed. If you're a small businessman, you've already noticed.
Yes, the current economic gain can largely be credited to Trump and his policies. I fail to see the wisdom of catering to Trump's nativist base at the cost of losing that economic growth and the ability to brag about it. Even the President's own advisors are warning that the impact of the shutdown on the economy is worse than they anticipated.
Yes, $5 billion is a start - but at what ultimate cost? It's a Band-Aid, it's symbolism, it's a sop to his base. It's nothing more. To obtain real border security and be fair to working Americans, the two sides have to finally negotiate a good deal reforming immigration and committing funds to border security on a comprehensive basis. How can that happen when the two sides won't even deign to sit down and talk to each other like human beings?
Any "victory" that Trump wins will be of the pyrrhic variety. He cannot be so afraid of his nativist, anti-immigrant base that he forgets that he is President of the nation. Let him declare his emergency if he's willing to fight for it in court, and set an imperial precedent for when the Dems regain the Presidency. But there are too many innocents being hurt - the shutdown needs to end soon.