memeorandum: Obama Fiscal Cliff Remarks Spark Republican Threats To Blow Up Deal (Sabrina Siddiqui/The Huffington Post)

12:00 AM ET, January 1, 2013

Top Items:

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:

Tentative Deal Is Reached to Raise Taxes on the Wealthy — WASHINGTON — Furious last-minute negotiations between the White House and the Senate Republican leadership on Monday secured a tentative agreement to allow tax rates to rise on affluent Americans, but the measure was not going to pass …

Discussion: American Prospect, The Maddow Blog, Taegan Goddard's …, Daily Kos and Washington Post

Ezra Klein / Wonkblog:

Why the White House thinks it's winning the ‘fiscal cliff’ — Consider the ongoing fiscal cliff negotiations from the White House's perspective. — The specifics of the potential McConnell-Biden deal are fluid, but the bottom line, at the moment, seems to be this: It raises taxes …

Discussion: Jared Bernstein, Booman Tribune, Brad DeLong, Angry Bear and Mother Jones

Leigh Ann Caldwell / CBS News:

It's official: Deal reached on “fiscal cliff” — As revelers in Times Square and cities and towns across the country wait for the ball to drop to ring in the new year, politicians in Washington have announced that a ball is not likely to drop on the average taxpayer.

Discussion: TalkLeft and Firedoglake

Mollie Reilly / The Huffington Post:

Fiscal Cliff: Live Updates On Congress, White House Negotiations … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Barack Obama , Congress, Barack Obama , Video, Politics News, Fiscal Cliff, Fiscal Cliff Deal, Fiscal Cliff Live Updates, Fiscal Cliff Negotiations, Fiscal Cliff Talks, Fiscal Cliff Updates, Obama Fiscal Cliff, Politics News

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and Hullabaloo

Ezra Klein / Wonkblog:

Here's what Republicans really hated about Obama's news conference — President Obama's cheerful, mocking statement enraged Republicans. But the bigger problem is he said something Republican leaders have been trying to hide from their members. Obama said, clearly, that if the GOP wants …

Discussion: The Atlantic Online

Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:

Fiscal Cliff Deal Growing More Likely, Would Raise $715 Billion In Revenue … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Bush Tax Cuts, Video, Boehner Fiscal Cliff, Fiscal Cliff, Fiscal Cliff Deal, Fiscal Cliff Tax Revenues, Fiscal Cliff Taxes, Obama Fiscal Cliff, Obama Fiscal Cliff Deal, Tax Hikes, Politics News

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, CNN, The Plum Line, Daily Download, Politico, Post Politics, Firedoglake, The Maddow Blog, Washington Monthly and Mashable!

Jennifer Bendery / The Huffington Post:

Fiscal Cliff Deal Reached: White House, Hill Leaders Agree To Delay Sequester By Two Months … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Harry Reid , John Boehner, Nancy Pelosi, Barack Obama , Barack Obama , Video, 2012 Fiscal Cliff, Harry Reid Fiscal Cliff, US Fiscal Cliff, Fiscal Cliff, Fiscal Cliff 2012 …

Discussion: Alan Colmes'Alan Colmes', New York Post, Addicting Info, AMERICAblog and Post Politics

Wall Street Journal:

U.S. Budget Deal Is Sealed — The White House and Senate Republicans are closing in on a budget compromise that would raise tax rates on couples making more than $450,000 a year, increase taxes on large inheritances and extend unemployment benefits for a year.

Discussion: Washington Wire

Matthew O'Brien / The Atlantic Online:

The Estate Tax Is a Huge Giveaway in the Fiscal-Cliff Talks — It will cost us $375 billion over the next decade if we keep the estate tax from going back to its Clinton-era levels. That's twice the savings from switching to chained CPI. — (Reuters) — It's time to talk …

Discussion: Politico, Hullabaloo, Wonkblog and Post Politics

Paul Krugman:

Conceder In Chief? — OK, I've had my own sorta-kinda briefing on the apparent fiscal cliff deal, and I'm pretty much with Noam Scheiber. Viewed on its own, it's a bad and upsetting deal but not as terrible as initial rumors had it. But the strategic consequences are likely to be very bad indeed, and in very short order too.

Discussion: The Reality-Based Community

Sabrina Siddiqui / The Huffington Post:
Obama Fiscal Cliff Remarks Spark Republican Threats To Blow Up Deal

Discussion: Addicting Info, The Gateway Pundit, Michelle Malkin and Hot Air

Washington Post:
(APPLAUSE) — Thank you. Please, everybody have a seat.

Discussion: Firedoglake, The National Memo and Greg Mankiw's Blog

bigstory.ap.org:
AP SOURCES: ‘FISCAL CLIFF’ DEAL EMERGING

Discussion: Wake up America, National Review, Cold Fury, Power Line, Weasel Zippers, Weekly Standard, Firedoglake and Hot Air

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
The case for the Dems' negotiating strategy

Discussion: Progressive Change …, CNN and Booman Tribune

Nancy Cook / NationalJournal.com:
Fiscal Compromise Would Set Stage For a New Year of Mini-Cliffs

Discussion: Hot Air, National Review and The Fix

Brian Beutler / Talking Points Memo:
Republicans Lash Out At Obama, Even As Fiscal Cliff Deal Close At Hand

Discussion: Politico and The Daily Caller

Suzy Khimm / Wonkblog:
Obama's wrong: This ‘cliff’ deal still raises taxes on the middle class

Discussion: The Plum Line, TalkLeft, Business Insider and Post Politics

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
Why Is Obama Caving on Taxes?

Timothy Noah / The New Republic:
Kill This Deal … Dear House and Senate Democrats,

Discussion: The Fix, The Raw Story, Washington Examiner, neo-neocon, EconoSpeak and Wake up America

Brian Beutler / Talking Points Memo:
McConnell's Latest Gambit Is A Big Tax And Debt Limit Tell

Discussion: Daily Kos

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:
2 Sides in Talks Inch Closer but No Fiscal Deal on Final Day

Discussion: Politico, CNN, The Daily Dish, Conservatives4Palin, Business Insider, Alan Colmes'Alan Colmes' and The Daily Banter

Amie Parnes / The Hill:
Obama says fiscal-cliff deal on taxes ‘in sight’ but not done yet

Discussion: Reuters and Politico

Noam Scheiber / The New Republic:
Democrats' Cliff Compromise Is Bad; But the Strategic Consequences Are Disastrous

Discussion: CNN and Washington Examiner

Deirdre Walsh / CNN:
TRENDING: House unlikely to vote on any deal until after cliff deadline

Discussion: Politico, The Raw Story, The Moderate Voice, Taegan Goddard's … and Political Insider

Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:
Obama: 'Looks Like I'm Going to Be Spending New Year's Here in D.C.'

Discussion: Ace of Spades HQ, Weasel Zippers and Jammie Wearing Fools

Katie Glueck / Politico:
Grover Norquist: Tax rates won't increase

Discussion: CNN, The Week, Crooks and Liars, Washington Examiner, Firedoglake and Outside the Beltway

The European / The European Union Times:

Clinton Injured, US Navy Seal Killed In Secret US Mission To Iran — A new Foreign Military Intelligence (GRU) report circulating in the Kremlin today is saying that United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton [photo 2nd right] was injured, and a top US Navy Seal Commander killed …

Discussion: CNN, Weekly Standard, KTLA 5 and NBC Politics

Kevin Robillard / Politico:
NBC reporter raises Hillary Clinton questions

Discussion: Truthdig, Weasel Zippers and The Hinterland Gazette

Ann Althouse / Althouse:
What's Happening to Hillary? Only a clod would say the clot is a plot!

Discussion: Associated Press, Wonkette, Daily Mail, Fox News, Washington Wire, Hot Air, CNN, Fausta's Blog, The New Civil Rights Movement, The Raw Story and The Daily Dish

Frank Newport / Gallup:
Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama Most Admired in 2012

Discussion: Globe and Mail, The Daily Caller, The Fix, The Hinterland Gazette, The Greenroom, Washington Examiner, msnbc.com, Politico and First Read

Ian Swanson / The Hill:

Senate to hold New Year's Eve vote on Biden-GOP fiscal cliff deal — The Senate will vote on legislation to extend tax rates on annual income under $450,000 on New Year's Eve. — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said the vote would be held after a Congressional Budget Office score …

Discussion: Post Politics

USA Today:
Washington poised to go over ‘fiscal cliff’

Discussion: Firedoglake and Associated Press

CBS News:
Finally, a “fiscal cliff” breakthrough

Discussion: For What It's Worth and Outside the Beltway

Louis Michael Seidman / New York Times:

Let's Give Up on the Constitution — AS the nation teeters at the edge of fiscal chaos, observers are reaching the conclusion that the American system of government is broken. But almost no one blames the culprit: our insistence on obedience to the Constitution, with all its archaic, idiosyncratic and downright evil provisions.

James Taranto / Wall Street Journal:
Long Walks, Short Piers

Discussion: Wizbang and The Gateway Pundit

Jonathan H. Adler / The Volokh Conspiracy:
Seidman: “Let's Give Up on [Parts of] the Constitution”

Discussion: oup.com, protein wisdom, National Review and Cafe Hayek

Don Kaplan / NY Daily News:

Political commentator Sean Hannity was one of the big losers in the 2012 election — The right-wing Fox News host lost half his audience in the weeks after Obama's win — Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity had predicted President Obama would lose in a landslide.

Discussion: The National Memo, Politico and The Hinterland Gazette

New York Post:

Greenwich Village couple busted with cache of weapons, bombmaking explosives: sources — The privileged daughter of a prominent city doctor, and her boyfriend — a Harvard grad and Occupy Wall Street activist — have been busted for allegedly having a cache of weapons and a bombmaking explosive in their Greenwich Village apartment.

Discussion: Power Line, seattlepi.com, Ed Driscoll, Politicker, TalkLeft, Weasel Zippers, JustOneMinute, The Other McCain, Gawker, The Lonely Conservative, Wizbang, The Greenroom and Small Dead Animals

Conor Friedersdorf / The Atlantic Online:

The Worst Holiday: New Year's Eve Is Over-hyped and Anti-Climactic — An absurd mix of international traditions would be better than how we celebrate it in America. — The national embarrassment of American New Year's Eve celebrations embodied in one image. And it only got worse. / Reuters

Discussion: Outside the Beltway and The Daily Dish