In a post at his New York Times blog, the award-winning economist and columnist Paul Krugman argues that the right's crusade against Obamacare is a byproduct of class antagonism and a radical right-wing movement that's gone beyond the control of its hyper-wealthy benefactors.

Concerning the government shutdown over Obamacare, Krugman writes, "There's a definite class-war aspect to this fight, pitting the interests of the 0.1 percent against those of lower-income families." But according to Krugman, that doesn't explain the whole story, because "the 0.1 percent, by and large, are pleading with the GOP to knock it off." He then notes that even Karl Rove, "more or less the designated defender of upper-class privileges," is complaining over not being listened to.

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Ultimately, Krugman concludes, the radical right is like Frankenstein's monster, with the hyper-wealthy playing the role of the doomed mad scientist. "[M]y working theory," he writes, "is that wealthy individuals bought themselves a radical right party, believing ... that it would cut their taxes and remove regulations." What the 0.1 percent didn't realize is that "eventually the craziness would take on a life of its own, and that the monster they created would turn on its creators as well as the little people."