Publicly, the Democrats are full of confidence that they have the Republicans cornered on the partial government shutdown. They figure that with the help of their media friends, they can keep the public ignorant of Harry Reid's refusal to pass legislation form the House that would alleviate most of the pain around national parks and other funding areas.

But when it comes to body language, a different story is being told. Democrats with something to lose are heading for the tall grass. Last weekend, Rosslyn Smith pointed out that incumbent Democrat office holders were completely missing from the Sunday TV talk shows, while Republicans were numerous.

Today, an analogous situation exists, but with incumbent minority group Democrats from safe seats being willing to brave questioning, while Republicans have no such limitations. She writes: "This week the Democrats on the Sunday talk shows are all members of minority groups from safe gerrymandered districts."

Clearly, Democrats understand that their position cannot sustain close scrutiny.