Nobody seems to know with any certainty whether a budget deal is near, but one thing does appear beyond doubt – too many Hill Republicans are scared to death of a repeat of 1995.
That shouldn’t come as a surprise for two reasons. First, Democrats have pounded away at the idea Republicans will “lose” if there is another government shutdown. Ask Harry Reid about the rising inflation rate and he will find a way to remind GOPers that they “lost” in 1995. Ask him about reports of al Qaeda elements among the Libyan rebels and he will talk about why Republicans “lost” in 1995.
Second, the liberal mainstream media conveniently and purposely gives Democrats every possible opportunity to remind Republicans that they “lost” in 1995 but never bother to ask Reid and his Democratic colleagues why if the Republicans “lost” in 1995, they maintained control of both chambers of Congress in 1996 and for the next decade.
Republicans apparently never stop shaking at the knees to ask themselves that question, either, so the current budget battle staggers forward with Democrats confident they can outlast the sheep on the other side of aisle and thus prevent any real permanent federal spending reductions.
But not only should the Timid Tommies of the Hill GOP take a fresh look at what happened after the 1995 shutdown, they ought to also pay close attention to the latest Rasmussen Reports survey of what the American public thinks about the prospect of a shutdown in 2011.
Here’s what Rasmussen says:
“A majority of voters are fine with a partial shutdown of the federal government if that’s what it takes to get deeper cuts in federal government spending”(emphasis added).
That’s worth repeating:
“A majority of voters are fine with a partial shutdown of the federal government if that’s what it takes to get deeper cuts in federal government spending”(more emphasis added).
And we’re not talking a slim majority, we’re talking 57 percent of Likely Voters. You get 57 percent of likely voters pulling the lever for the same candidate and you’ve got yourself a landslide.
Here’s more of what Rasmussen found:
“Voters think making deeper spending cuts in the federal budget for 2011 is more important than avoiding a partial government shutdown (there’s that emphasis added again).
“Thirty-one percent (31%) disagree and say avoiding a shutdown is more important. Twelve percent (12%) are not sure,” Rasmussen said.
For those who think Rasmussen must have asked the question in some super secret way designed to get such a response, you can see the survey question wording. Just click here.
Just as important as that 57 percent figure is the 36 percent among respondents that Rasmussen said explicitly favored continued Democratic spending levels over a government shutdown. In other words, only one of every three voters favors the Democrats’ head-in-the-sand approach on the spending issue.
So the question is simple: Are Hill Republicans going to stop shooting BBs at trillion dollar deficits and debts, man-up to the Democrats, and face-down this paralyzing bogeyman about 1995?
Here’s an idea: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker John Boehner should call a joint closed-caucus meeting with compulsory attendance. And for the program, show “Facing Giants” over and over again until their charges bust down the doors like a bunch of crazed NFL linebackers who can’t wait to sack quarterbacks Democrats.
