Took Them Long Enough

With all the non-stop attention on Bernie Sanders's theatrics and the guilty pleasure of "the President's own party" opposing it, it seems the Village has finally noticed that there are those on the right who oppose Obama's tax deal as well.

Many conservative activists are particularly upset that the measure would add almost $900 billion to the deficit - although they all support the extension of the Bush-era tax cuts, arguing those would spur economic growth.

Many conservatives, including Rep. Michelle Bachmann of Minnesota, are also concerned because the measure would increase some taxes, pointing to the resumption of the estate tax, as well as extending the unemployment compensation for the long-term unemployed without any offsetting spending cuts.

Bachmann told CNN's American Morning Friday she would not vote for the package as it is currently drafted.

"It ramps up spending in a big way, and it also ramps up deficits, and we are seeing a real difficulty with selling the treasury bonds," she said.

Leaders of the Tea Party Patriots group are asking each of their members to call five members of Congress urging them to vote against the proposal.

"The Deal" or 'The Tax Deal' as it is becoming known around the country between President Obama and Congressional Leadership is problematic. This is a deal that needs to be opposed," says the group on its website.

"I am very upset. It is a direct breach of the Republican pledge not to add to the deficit," the Tea Party Patriots' National Coordinator Mark Meckler told CNN.

I could have told you this would be the real Republican reaction to the deal, and I said as much earlier in the week.   Anyone who has been paying even basic attention to the Tea Party in the last year should have known that there was no way they would allow increased deficit spending, or a bipartisan win for President Obama, and sure as hell no way they would allow something that did both to go by unchallenged.

The same conservatives who are gleefully taunting progressives saying that the President has abandoned them are the same ones who have failed to notice that Republicans are doing the same to the Tea Party.  And that latter fight is going to be far more ugly.