THE WORLD WATCHES THE TEA PARTY DRAG AMERICA TO RUINATION

America, once the model of democracy for the world, has now become the reckless clown of the world, thanks to the extremists in the GOP.  Political morons like Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin, and Alan West think that nothing disastrous will happen if Congress doesn't raise the debt ceiling.  They think that because they are ignorant fools who know nothing about governing--only how to grab headlines and squawk like the bird brains that they are.

Here are some excerpts from around the world on what we look like to other countries.  Nice going Tea Party ideologues.  You've sullied America's reputation as no other political extremist movement has besmirched it ever before in our history.

From Think Progress:

World Reacts To Debt Ceiling Debacle: ‘Irresponsible,’ ‘Worst Kind Of Absurd Theatrics,’ U.S. Politicians A ‘Laughing Stock’

"By Guest Blogger posted from ThinkProgress Security on Jul 30, 2011 at 11:01 am

Our guest blogger is Ken Sofer, special assistant with the National Security and International Policy team at the Center for American Progress.

Conservative German Die Welt: “[T]here are few signs of self-doubt or self-awareness in the U.S. … [The Tea Party movement] sees the other side as their enemy. Negotiations with the Democrats, whether it’s about appointing a judge or the insolvency of the United States, are only successful if the enemy is defeated. Compromise, they feel, is a sign of weakness and cowardice.”

The German mass-circulation Bild: “What America is currently exhibiting is the worst kind of absurd theatrics and the whole world is being held hostage… Most importantly, the Republicans have turned a dispute over a technicality into a religious war, which no longer has any relation to a reasonable dispute between the elected government and the opposition.”

French newspaper Le Monde:”The American politicians supposed to lead the most powerful nation in the world are becoming a laughing stock.”

Chinese state-owned newspaper Xinhua: “Given the United States’ status as the world’s largest economy and the issuer of the dominant international reserve currency, such political brinksmanship in Washington is dangerously irresponsible.”

The founding documents of many nations around the world take their inspiration from and quote the U.S. Declaration of Independence and Constitution. But now, foreigners don’t seem to be too inspired watching the intransigent wing of one political party that controls one house of one branch of the federal government hold the entire U.S. hostage. American soft power has taken a self-inflicted hit as a result of the debt ceiling debate.
Even if Congress manages to forge a deal against the wishes of the Tea Party and deliver a bill to President Obama’s desk raising the debt ceiling before default, the damage to our international standing has already been done. Other nations won’t forget how some members of Congress were so careless to allow the international economy fall into another financial disaster in order to score a few political points."

DEBT CEILING HIKES BY RECENT PRESIDENTS: