It faces massive competition from entrenched airlines, is loathed by a good chunk of one of the main American political parties, is subsidised by taxpayers, and has never made a profit.

ECONOMIST: Business travel

It is hard to come up with another example of a policy that has failed so often and so violently that has enjoyed the support of both American political parties.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: History's tragic farce

It is particularly important to note that the United States can help support viable non-communist political parties for future elections by sending Cambodian-American instructors to the refugee camps to teach the fundamentals of democracy.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Giving Peace A Chance In Cambodia: A Primer For US Policy

But given a second pass, the American obsession with national politics and policy speaks to a hugely negative trampling on the Constitution by both political parties.

FORBES: The State Of the Union: An Excessive Amount of State

But the then Leader of the Commons, Margaret Beckett, defended Mr Blair's decision, saying TV debates were "geared to an American-style election" and would focus attention on the individuals rather than the political parties.

BBC: George W Bush and John Kerry

Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican who has been one of the primary foes of campaign finance reform, called the Ney-Wynn bill "a step in the right direction" and said the Shays-Meehan legislation was "fundamentally un-American" because it would limit what outside groups and political parties could say close to elections.

CNN: House to take up campaign finance reform