When even relatively moderate Republicans like Michael Steele are talking like this, it seems clear that the GOP really is planning to throw a giant tantrum and shut down the government.

With Washington consumed by a fight over spending, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee said today that his party shouldn’t be afraid of a government shutdown, arguing that such a stand-off would send a powerful signal to the public about the GOP’s commitment to cutting the budget.

“I personally think there’s nothing wrong with a government shutdown,” Michael Steele told us on ABC’s “Top Line” today.

“I’ve been an advocate for it over six, seven months now for the simple reason it is the shocker. It is the reality check that the spenders need to have, that those who are trying to chart a different course need to have, whether they are Republicans or Democrats in the Congress.”