#TrumpShutdown beats #SchumerShutdown in hashtag battle to assign blame

The battle between congressional Democrats and Republicans to blame each other for the shutdown of the federal government today also played out on a wider and virtual sphere on Twitter.

Republicans are seeking to brand the shutdown with the name of the Senate's leading Democrat, Chuck Schumer of New York, using the alliterative hashtag, #SchumerShutdown."

Democrats, meanwhile, are pointing fingers at Donald Trump, labeling the impasse #TrumpShutdown.

As of Saturday at 1:20 p.m. ET, #TrumpShutdown had been tweeted over 2.6 million times, compared to just under 1.2 million tweets of #SchumerShutdown.

#TrumpShutdown was also the top trending hashtag worldwide.

"Before he took office, @realDonaldTrump was happy to say the president owns the blame for a government shutdown," read a tweet from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Friday. "As President, he blames Democrats. That tells you all you need to know. #TrumpShutdown""

Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California noted in his tweet that Republicans control the presidency and both houses of Congress.

White House press secretary meanwhile slammed Democrats for behaving like "obstructionist losers, not legislators."

Republicans began blasting a link to the website SchumerShutdown.com in tweets using the hashtag starting on Thursday, Jan. 18, a day before the last votes before the government officially shut down.

Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney was asked about the competing hashtags Saturday and brushed aside the suggestion that the majority of people think the president is at fault.

"My favorite is still the 'Schumer Shutdown,'" Mulvaney said. "It's got that nice little ring to it, doesn't it?"

The Democratic tactic of blaming the president for the shutdown may be well received by some in the public, according to the results of an ABC News/Washington Post poll released Friday. The poll found the public would be more likely to condemn Trump and his fellow Republicans in the event of a government shutdown.

Forty-eight percent of the poll's respondents indicated they would blame Trump and Republicans compared to 28 percent of those surveyed who said they would point fingers at congressional Democrats.