It's a Bill Maher vs. Ann Coulter economic world

At times, the United States looks like an economic house-divided -- a Bill Maher vs. Ann Coulter war over financial policy and ideology.

There's no question the United States currently shows strong tendencies, consistent with previous economic and political cycles, of moving to the left after almost 30 years of conservatism that started with the Reagan presidency in 1981. The 2008 election of President Obama and the Democratic Party to majorities in both houses of Congress was the first and most obvious sign of this political and social trend, but it's also evident in our response to the financial crisis -- the hugely expanded role for the federal government, and the enormous amount of collective action that will continue to be needed to fix the mess we're in.