I'm an old-school pundit, one who admires the wisdom of Ron Fournier, Ruth Marcus, Chris Cillizza and Dana Milbank. These are the types of people who know the right questions to ask in their columns.
At the Gilooly household, broccoli night turns into fight night.
Throw a couple florets of broccoli on the kids' plates and they become fussy.
"We don't want to eat the broccoli!" they exclaim.
"You have to," I calmly reply. "Broccoli is good for you. Very nutritious."
They make faces, slam fists, pout and choke down the broccoli. It may seem like torture to them, but we know it's really not.
I think you know where I'm going with this.
Washington D.C. and the surrounding area is full of some of the finest eating establishments in the country. A thriving culinary scene can get you just about anything you want. People of all stripes are constantly on the go, which means they enjoy the fine food in excess.
No surprise there, since our federal budget looks like a few too many trips to Faithfully Sweet. In fact, our budget is a horror show of fast food and dessert. There's a whole lot of excess, and when I look at the plate, I don't see anything very nutritious.
There's cheese sticks instead of kale..
There's ice cream instead of mixed berries.
There's a thick, juicy cheeseburger instead of fish.
Like most Americans, our budget is obese. We tell ourselves that tomorrow we're going to start that diet, then we eat two Big Macs for lunch. Our budget personified would be one of those "Biggest Loser" contestants, but that's a slight to them because at least they are motivated.
Where's our motivation?
When Republicans and Democrats alike shut down the government Oct. 1, pundits like myself thought this would be the good kick in the pants we'd need to get serious about the issues plaguing our country. Instead, we're back to chugging Big Gulps and ordering off the (Trillion) Dollar Menu.
Just like the person that kicks the diet down the road one more time, that's our Washington leadership on the budget. If we were serious, we'd look in the mirror and realize we need a change. We'd swear off the Burger King, the ice cream sundaes, the delicious bar food. Our budget would be the equivalent of lean meat with two vegetable sides. No more bridge construction in Iowa (cupcakes). No more turtle research in Florida (potato chips). No more subsidies for energy companies (Diet Coke).
It is President Obama's job to get us motivated to eat broccoli again. He has to be the annoying trainer at the gym. President Obama must get John Boehner and Harry Reid into a room and say "enough is enough." Boehner must relent on tax reform - call it the exercise. Reid must relent on deep spending cuts - call it the healthy eating.
A few years of this and we'll have cut the fat. And a president always eager to put his legacy on everything will get the credit for the transformation.
Maybe I was wrong at the start of this space to compare my children to Washington D.C.
Even they aren't that spoiled.