The G.O.P.’s Existential Crisis

Last Friday's Krugman:

It’s important to make this point, because I keep seeing articles about the “fiscal cliff” that do, in fact, describe it — often in the headline — as a debt crisis. But it isn’t. The U.S. government is having no trouble borrowing to cover its deficit. In fact, its borrowing costs are near historic lows. And even the confrontation over the debt ceiling that looms a few months from now if we do somehow manage to avoid going over the fiscal cliff isn’t really about debt. 

No, what we’re having is a political crisis, born of the fact that one of our two great political parties has reached the end of a 30-year road. The modern Republican Party’s grand, radical agenda lies in ruins — but the party doesn’t know how to deal with that failure, and it retains enough power to do immense damage as it strikes out in frustration. 

More here.

Busy tonight, and tomorrow night, too, but I have a nice little treat planned for then.  But for now, fortunately for me, my favorite Nobel Prize winning economist hits on exactly the topic I was hitting on yesterday, but delves much more deeply into the specifics: how is the Republican existential crisis going to play itself out in terms of actual policy and Washington politicking?  Like I said, there's a lot of entertainment to be had here watching them burn down the house, but the problem is that they're very likely going to burn down the house.  And fire burns.

Go check it out; it's a good essay.

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