Can you mix marriage with politics? Depends on your gender

On the defensive, Bash insisted that her question had nothing to do with gender. "I would ask you that if you were a man," she told Conway. "No, you wouldn't," Conway fired back.

Bash suggested that it can be "hard" for two adults who are married to have different opinions. Conway seized on the word "hard" -- asking "hard for whom?" The married couple? Or the media?

Conway acknowledged that it could be "difficult" for her children -- who she said were probably watching -- to see their mom have to defend their dad. But, she jabbed, the kids are used to witnessing a "double standard for their mother."

Why should Conway be expected to comment on her husband's political views? Since when is a wife accountable for what her husband tweets? And what does all this matter anyway?

The rules to this game have changed, folks.

It seems like just yesterday that we were being told by the media that it was totally irrelevant that Chuck Todd's wife, Kristian Denny Todd, had done extensive consulting and communications work with Democrats, including former Sen. Jim Webb and Sen. Bernie Sanders, and contributed money to Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia. Conservatives say that this amounts to a "conflict of interest" for the NBC newsman. Todd insists that his wife's work doesn't influence his views, and he claims that they have both been transparent about who does what.

We were also assured that Andrew McCabe isn't responsible for the fact that his wife -- while running unsuccessfully as a Democrat for the Virginia state Senate in 2015 -- took in more than $675,000 from Democratic political action committees controlled by then-Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. It was McAuliffe, a longtime ally and confidante of Bill and Hillary Clinton who, according to The Wall Street Journal, urged Jill McCabe to run for office. Curiously, this was all about the same time that it was reported that Hillary Clinton had used a private email server while serving as secretary of state - a lapse in judgment that would ultimately be investigated by the FBI, whose leadership included Andrew McCabe. What a small world!

When Todd was asked by radio hosts about his wife's political work, he bristled: "I don't control her political opinions, and she doesn't control mine."

That's a great line, Chuck. Can Kellyanne Conway borrow it?

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Ruben Navarrette's email address is ruben@rubennavarrette.com. His daily podcast, "Navarrette Nation," is available through every podcast app.