This whole charade, which costs hundreds(?) of thousands of Americans their wages, cost the American economy so many hundreds of millions or billions, and made the country look dumb in the eyes of the world, is all down to the Tea Party element of the Repulicans.
The Tea Party is essentially all the Ray Hadleys and Alan Joneses of the world gathered together crying 'taxed enough already', 'curb government waste' etc. While also bringing other distasteful views along for the ride -sexist, racism, religion, climate change denial etc. They are particularly angry in the US because they have a black president, and most of them are southerners.
Cory St Bernardi, the erstwhile olympic medallist turned pollie who recently made headlines saying that same sex marriage is one short step away from legal bestiality, is trying his hardest to import the Tea Party to australia. Along with other brands of hard right protectionist religious lunacy.
www.theglobalmail.orgThey have a foothold, in the form of cando.
www.cando.org.au/Patron is David Flint, who may or may not be Alan Jones's lover.
www.cando.org.au/about/team-candoWere they competent in any way shape or form, they would be as dangerous for this country as the US tea party. Luckily for us, they're not.