It was a bold move - taking away a prime time TV appearance from a President who relishes such opportunities.
The powers of the Speaker of the House are limited compared to those of the executive branch, but she does have control over one aspect of the presidency; the State of the Union address.
Every year, US Presidents make a speech to a joint session of Congress.
It is a chance to highlight successes of the past and outline plans for the future.
It is carried on prime time television and is one of the most high profile events in the presidential calendar.
But here is the important part; the speech is delivered from the floor of the US House of Representatives, which means it is controlled by the Speaker of the House.
Since the start of the year, that has been Democrat Nancy Pelosi.
Initially, she asked President Trump to consider rescheduling the State of the Union address or submitting it in writing because of the partial government shutdown.
Speaker Pelosi cited security concerns but this was questionable.
The Secretary of Homeland Security quickly responded by saying that the Secret Service would have no difficulty providing security for the event despite the shutdown.
Read more:
Trump announces deal to reopen US govt for three weeks
Pelosi blocks Trump's speech until govt shutdown ends
President Trump announced that he would deliver the address as originally planned on Tuesday 29 January but Nancy Pelosi’s response was swift and unambiguous.
The State of the Union address would not be going ahead until the government was reopened.
Donald Trump responded with a Tweet: "I will do the address when the shutdown is over."
As the Shutdown was going on, Nancy Pelosi asked me to give the State of the Union Address. I agreed. She then changed her mind because of the Shutdown, suggesting a later date. This is her prerogative - I will do the Address when the Shutdown is over. I am not looking for an....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 24, 2019
....alternative venue for the SOTU Address because there is no venue that can compete with the history, tradition and importance of the House Chamber. I look forward to giving a "great" State of the Union Address in the near future!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 24, 2019
He added that he wasn’t looking for an alternative venue because there is no venue that can compete with the history, tradition and importance of the House Chamber.
This was a victory for Nancy Pelosi.
A day later there was to be another win for the Democrats.
As the shutdown entered its 35th day, over 800,000 federal workers missed their second pay cheques.
A shortage of air traffic controllers was causing delays at many airports and there were warnings that the President was losing support among Republicans.
Donald Trump caved and announced a plan to temporarily reopen the government that did not include funding for his border wall.
This is what the Democrats had been demanding from the start.
President Trump may have lost this round of the shutdown showdown but it’s far from over.
For now, the government is only being reopened for three weeks and the US President hasn’t ruled out declaring a national emergency to bypass Congress and build his wall.
Democrats have been in control of the House of Representatives since the start of the month and clashes with the President were inevitable.
In this first standoff, it was Donald Trump who backed down but there are two more years of rows to come before the next election.
