We should congratulate Democrats for their "victory" in getting the government re-opened and avoiding a crisis with the debt limit. They certainly are in a gloating mood this morning:

New Yoirk Times: "The Republican Surrender."

Also in the Times: "Republicans Back Down, Ending Crisis Over Shutdown and Debt Limit"

The Hill: "Republicans grapple with stinging defeat"

Liberal blogs are, as you might imagine, even more nauseating.

Let's tote up what exactly the Democrats "won."

1. Four months from now, we get repeat the whole thing all over again.Was a 16 day partial shutdown of government and playing with debt ceiling fire worth a measley 4 months of respite from all out war? Some victory, eh?

2. Now that the budget and debt food fights are over, problems with Obamacare are going to come roaring to the fore. In about a fortnight, Democrats are going to be praying for another distraction as the cries of outraged citizens and the total unworkability of healthcare.gov website combine to make any "victory" they think they've achieved ring hollow, indeed.

3. It will be business as usual on Capitol Hill. The president will seek to push amnesty and immigration reform in the House. This, after calling House Republicans "hostage takers" and implying they were terrorists. Yeah, right. Good luck with that, Barry.

4. The Democrats lost on getting rid of the sequester. They lost on setting much higher funding levels for the government through January 15. They lost in raising the debt ceiling for longer than a few months. They lost on allowing fraudsters to game the Obamacare subsidy regime by forcing consumers to verify their income. Any more "victories" like this one and the GOP will win the war.

5. No doubt the Republicans took a PR hit in the polls. But so did the Democrats and Obama. With the mid term election still more than a year away, what do you think the American people will remember? A dust up over arcane issues like spending and the debt? Or the immediate, tragic, overwhelming bite that Obamacare is taking out of their take home pay?

In truth, the resolution of these issues - even for 4 months - probably means that the one thing the Democrats couldn't afford happen is going to happen; Obamacare will be an issue - perhaps the #1 issue - in midterms next November.

Reminder: The last time that happened was 2010 when concerns about Obamacare created a wave election and the GOP gained 63 seats in the House and 6 seats in the Senate.

So, yes - go ahead and gloat Democrats. Your "victory" will be but a memory when all your other chickens come home to roost.