At Brooklyn Young Republican meeting Congressman Michael Grimm revealed too much about himself — what really matters to him — and what apparently doesn’t

Near the end of the Q & A session at the Brooklyn Young Republican Club on Sunday, Mike Grimm revealed his greatest fear about what’s going on in Washington   —   “...[somebody] digging their heels in and shutting down the government...”  —   And then the worst thing in the world for Grimm   —   His  “money dries up....”

In a rare moment of nearly pure truth, the Brooklyn and Staten Island Republican’s words betrayed one of his hidden fears. He indicated that he is terrified that there might be another government shutdown before the 2014 election.  First, he mentioned that shutdowns poll badly for Republicans, but that ain’t the worst of it.  What really scares Congressman Grimm is that his FUND RAISING, even from his best and strongest Republican supporters, WILL DRY UP. Based on that and everything else he said to various people gathered in and around last Sunday’s meeting of the Brooklyn Young Republican Club, Grimm thinks that for practical reasons the Republican majority in the House can do nothing to stop Obamacare, deal with the debt and the debt ceiling, and/or effectively pursue various investigations.

The worst of it is preserved on video.  At about the four minute mark (4:00 subscript on video) into “– Part 2” of the video posted on You Tube by the Brooklyn Young Republican Club on 1/26/14, Republican-Conservative Congressman Michael Grimm makes it clear that “...unfortunately [THEY*] win when [WE**] shut down the government....  All the polling shows that....” (See “Brooklyn Young Republican Club Welcomes Congressman Michael Grimm - Pt. 2 ” posted by Brooklyn Young Republican Club, 1/26/14, published on YouTube [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsWrFtjsXuw] at 4:00 mark on video). [ * & ** :   the actual quote in the video recording says “...they win when they shut down the government...” with the context clearly indicating that “they” meant Democrats or the Obama Administration, but then the syntax makes little to no sense.  Besides, prior to making his recorded remarks, when Mr. Grimm had a brief confrontation with some non-supportive Republicans by the bar in Ceol — while being questioned concerning his support of or opposition to a conservative Republican agenda in the House, he was clear that he thought it was Tea Party Republicans that had dug in their heals and shut down the government.]

It was after mentioning who he thought “wins,” when and if there is a government shutdown, that Grimm made his gaff, which showed everybody  what it all really means to him personally   —   “Money dries up. I had some of my best, strongest Republican friends call me...”  AND TELL ME, “Turn the government back on, turn the government back on....” (@4:15 mark on video).

That was Mike Grimm’s “SHOW ME THE MONEY” moment.

About a half hour earlier, the Congressman had a short debate about his support or non-support of certain conservative initiatives in the House. At that time, he didn’t directly address the questions put to him, but instead Grimm went through a well-rehearsed  litany of  “moderate Republican” talking points: “...we only control one-half of one-third of the government...”; we tried digging our heels in, shut down the government and got killed in the polls”; “I’m there on the front lines in Washington...”  and [paraphrase >>>  ...I think I know what I’m doing and it is nothing like what you think or what you’ve done in politics.....]

Maybe the congressman is right.  After all, who among us has had our fund raising dry up because of the shut down, how many of us had some of our best and strongest Republican friends call and tell us “Turn the government back on, turn the government back on....”

Unfortunately, it looks like all of that has caused the congressman to confuse his campaign funding “Bottom Line” with what he calls the “Front Lines” in Washington, D.C.

It also puts many of the good things that Michael Grimm had to say on Sunday into serious doubt. Things like standing in front of the Brooklyn Young Republican Club gives Congressman Grimm “...some sense of what [he] had when he was in the Marines...”;  or like when Grimm said, “I care more about this country than I do about politics, much more....  The truth is I don’t care about political victory....”

Well, now we know something about what Congressman Michael Grimm really does care about  —  “The money dries up....” and  “... some of my best, strongest Republican friends call me...”