The US Is Now A Banana Republic

With the exception of America's superb armed forces, Hitch agrees with Krugman:

At a White House meeting with his financial wizardsand I mean the term in its literal sensethe same chief executive is reported to have whimpered, “This whole sucker could implode,” or words to that effect. It’s not difficult to imagine the scene. So add one more banana-republic feature to the profile: a president who is a figurehead one day and a despot the next, and who goes all wide-eyed and calls on witch doctors when the portents don’t seem altogether reassuring.