Yeah, I don't know why I forgot the 3-way switch. That's what I get for posting while driving.
I assume "c/bs" means circuit breaker?
He still doesn't know whether he has the air switch or a hydraulic switch for the brake lights, so we don't know if air pressure was a factor or not.
I guess my main point was that touching 2 hot wires together on this truck would do nothing. Take a short wire and touch one end to the positive battery terminal. Now touch the other end of the wire to the same terminal. Nothing happens. The potential is equal so no current flows. It would be the same touching two hot wires together.
In order to short out the brake light circuit, the 3-way would have to be on, and have the brake pedal depressed (with air in the system for the air switch) and have the hot wire go to ground somewhere downstream of the pressure switch. Otherwise, none of the brake light supply wires would be hot and it wouldn't matter if they touched ground or even another hot wire.
In that case, it could be the 3-way got fried or the pressure switch fried, or both. I don't know what the current rating is for either switch, or which on is more likely to survive a dead short.
I think we're back to good old fashioned troubleshooting. He needs to determine if he has voltage at the supply side of the pressure switch. If YES, check the pressure switch output with the pedal pressed, or ohm out the switch to see if it closes with the pedal pressed.
If no voltage to the pressure switch, it's probably the 3-way switch. Do ANY of the lights work? Headlights or turn signals?