Bunning Shows Dems, GOP Are In Different Worlds

The big lesson from Sen. Bunning's blockade of unemployment benefits is that the Democrats and Republicans are now in totally different universes, writes Paul Krugman. This is amply demonstrated by Republicam Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona's threat to block a bill extending benefits for the rest of the year in an effort to get estate tax relief for the 0.25% of American households earning over $7 million, Krugman writes in the New York Times.

WIth the parties so far apart both intellectually and morally, bipartisanship is "now a foolish dream," and the Democrats won't be able get Republican cooperation on health care reform or any other issue for years to come, Krugman argues. "Someday, somehow, we as a nation will once again find ourselves living on the same planet," Krugman writes. "But for now, we aren’t. And that’s just the way it is." (More Jon Kyl stories.)