Sen. Flake Says Ted Cruz's Obamacare Strategy Failed Because Democrats Didn't Fear a Shutdown

Wasn't a fan of the strategy used by his colleague from Texas

Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) said the flaw in the strategy of Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) to defund Obamacare didn't take into account that the Democrats didn't fear a government shutdown.

"We all share the same goal, certainly to rein in spending, and no Republican voted for Obamacare before. But it's no secret that I haven't agreed with the tactic or the strategy here. I just don't think that we should have used this vehicle," Flake said this morning on MSNBC.

"For one, if you're going to take a stand on something, the other side has to fear a shutdown, and in this case I think the Democrats knew that if there were to be a shutdown that it would be Republican who take the blame. And so you're threatening to do something that the other side isn't very fearful of," he continued.

Flake stressed again that he's shares the goal of getting rid of Obamacare. "I just don't share the strategy, and I think they do want to get rid of Obamacare. I think we all do. But just isn't the right strategy in my view," he said.