The US midterms: Fundie is so last week . . .

The latest Religion Report looks at the failing marriage between libertarians and fundies in the Republican Party, also making the point that both groups are becoming disillusioned with the Bush administration, albeit for different reasons. Libertarians are unhappy with the increasing size and power of government under Bush; while the fundies are pissed off that the administration hasn't used its power--including its domination of the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government--to punish sodomites, further curtail the reproductive rights of women, and force prayer and pseudoscience upon students in public schools.

This all bodes very interesting for Australian politics. The Religious Right does not have the power and influence here that it enjoys in the US; nevertheless, the Coalition, in imitating what it believes has been a very successful Republican Party formula*, has focused a lot of energy into cultivating an evangelical Christian base of its own (the Hillsong vote). Now that the Republican formula has demonstrably failed, and with increasing numbers of "Howard's Battlers" struggling to service credit card debts or even losing their homes, it remains to be seen whether there will be a shift in direction on the part of the Howard Government (or whether it will keep on digging).

*OK, OK, I'm not being fair. In some areas--such as its cruelty towards asylum seekers--the Howard Government has been a global trendsetter.

UPDATE: Looks like the Dems have the Senate in the bag as well.

UPDATE II: Concerning reaction to the Dem's win, all's quiet on the RWDB front (so far). For sheer entertainment, have a look at the Little Green Footballs response (Jesus General). The RaptureReady crowd, meanwhile, are not happy with the fact that a Muslim has been elected to the House of Reps (Pharyngula).