But given the state's fiscal situation, and the tough medicine needed to rectify it, the Republicans could also lose by winning.

Or will Russia again put off taking the tough medicine?

But these warnings are usually ignored by national political leaders, who have no interest in administering tough medicine.

We have things we need to do, and we are taking tough medicine.

It was billed as tough but necessary medicine in order to raise the debt ceiling and stave off disaster.

But he's talking tough medicine, and I think that's good.

"This can be seen as tough medicine but it's medicine that's desperately needed."

Most astonishingly, he talked directly and frequently to his coal mining constituents about the need for more tough economic medicine.

But some analysts cheered the talk of markdowns, suggesting that the company was taking tough medicine to prepare itself for a strong holiday season.

"It's tough medicine for a tough problem," he declared at a news conference.