Threatening to shut down the government to stop Obamacare is the new way Republicans can show their manhood – and they’re wrong.
John Feehery says machismo is a huge part of politics, especially among Republicans who like to prove how tough they can be.
He says Ronald Reagan, who is basically a deity to modern conservatives, was not as tough as many remember him. He didn’t cut spending and even raised taxes.
Feehery argues shutting down the government to stop healthcare reform is not manly – it’s nothing more than a temper tantrum.
I have been in meetings where Republicans like to show how tough they really are by showing how much money they can cut from welfare programs, but is it really “tough” to kick families off of food stamps (or the SNAP program, as they call it these days).
Tough these days means sticking to the Constitution as exactly dreamed up by the Founding Fathers. Of course, back in those days, neither black Americans nor women could vote, so it was easier for the macho white man to get his way.
Those days are over my friends.
I am tired of being called a wimp and a squish because I want my party to do the responsible and politically rational thing.
I am tired of the macho men who think they can prove how “tough” they are by how long they can keep the government shut down.
That is not being tough. That is being stupid. And it is being immature.
