The former Bush adviser says the party is giving up an opportunity to gain momentum. Wallace: GOP is playing in traffic

Former George W. Bush adviser Nicole Wallace said Thursday it’s “idiotic” for Republicans to threaten a government shutdown over defunding Obamacare, comparing it to a child running into traffic.

Wallace, who was a communications chief for the Bush White House and Bush and McCain presidential campaigns, said she has to keep her 2-year-old child from riding his scooter into the street, and she called on the “adults in the Republican Party” to do the same.


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“When Republicans run into the street, despite the fact that there is a flashing red light, they’re going to get hit by the cars and [get] killed. So this is stupid politically. This is stupid at a policy level because … it has no chance of succeeding,” Wallace said Thursday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

While Wallace acknowledged there is support among the grass roots of the party and the public is against Obama’s signature health care law, there is no way the Republican will successfully defund it, and by threatening a government shutdown, the party is giving up an opportunity to actually gain momentum.

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“We’re actually at a moment as Republicans where even Bernie Sanders has described our party as on the offense, and now we’ll let our party run into moving traffic against a red light. It’s idiotic,” Wallace said.