This is from The Washington Post:
“Before Donald Trump became president, the litmus test, it was really about the ideological purity and conformity” with Republican ideas, Dent said. “Now the litmus test has changed: It’s loyalty to the man.”
“If I set myself on fire for them, they would complain that the temperature of the flame isn’t hot enough,” the GOP lawmaker said, explaining how Trump was “a factor” in his decision to retire after his term ends next year. “It’s not about ideology anymore, it’s about loyalty to the president."
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My question is about that sitting-on-the-fire metaphor:
Does “If I set myself on fire for them, they would complain that the temperature of the flame isn’t hot enough” mean that Senator Dent thinks that, in fact, Republicans are sitting on that metaphorical fire and pretend that the temperature of the flame is not hot enough?
tkacka15 that sitting-on-the-fire metaphor: It is not "sitting on the fire" but "setting on fire". The speaker is saying that whatever extreme lengths he goes to in order to satisfy the party's demands (or Trump's demands), it still isn't enough for them.
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tkacka15that sitting-on-the-fire metaphor:
It is not "sitting on the fire" but "setting on fire".
The speaker is saying that whatever extreme lengths he goes to in order to satisfy the party's demands (or Trump's demands), it still isn't enough for them.