“The so-called government shutdown which started last week affects just 17 percent of the entire federal government, according to a recent spending calculation,” Fox News reports. Why? “The bulk of the federal budget goes toward what is known as ‘mandatory’ programs – entitlements like Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare. These payments cannot be interrupted in the case of a partial government shutdown.” All of which makes Obama’s strategy to make ‘em suffer that much more craven.