Stupid is as stupid does... Well the stupid people finally gave up...

Freshman Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, who led Tea Party conservatives into the partial shutdown on a quest to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, admitted that there was "nothing to be gained" by mounting a procedural fight to block the Senate from voting.

Cruz promised, however, that "this fight" to kill the health care law would continue. The first skirmish could come as soon as January, when Congress must again decide whether to fully fund the government.

The key during the battle that intensified after the partial shutdown began Oct. 1 was a unified House Democratic caucus that in turn provided leverage for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Obama to resist Republican demands to overhaul or kill the Affordable Care Act.

"I think folks recognized that we couldn't allow this small group (of conservatives) to hold the economy hostage," said Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, a close Pelosi ally. "Had it worked, what would have been next? Social Security? Medicare? A woman's right to choice?"

"At the end of the day, we knew Republicans were always going to have to rely on Democratic votes to pass anything responsible that the president was willing to sign and that the Senate would pass," said a House leadership aide.

Finally, on Tuesday morning, Boehner issued his final demand, which by then amounted to minor, "lipstick" changes to a bipartisan Senate deal. Unable to sell the plan to his own members, Boehner told reporters, "There are a lot of opinions about what direction to go."

Rep. John Garamendi, D-Walnut Grove (Sacramento County), said the GOP loss could alter the terrain for the next budget fight in January. "The radicals and disruptors didn't win," he said. "They were badly chastened by the shutdown. You only need to look at the polls to understand that."

With Congress voting Wednesday to end the government shutdown, many national parks and federal agencies were expected to start operations again within hours and begin ramping up operations, but some might require more than a day.