memeorandum: View From the Left: Obama ‘Kept Giving Stuff Away’ (Peter Baker/New York Times)

5:00 PM ET, January 1, 2013

Top Items:

Peter Schroeder / The Hill:

CBO: ‘Fiscal cliff’ deal carries $4 trillion price tag over next decade — The Senate deal to avoid the “fiscal cliff” will add roughly $4 trillion to the deficit when compared to current law, according to new numbers from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).

Discussion: Politico, CNN, The Gateway Pundit and The Other McCain

Politico:

House GOP opposition to fiscal cliff bill grows — A carefully-crafted Senate compromise to avert the fiscal cliff could be in jeopardy, as House Republicans seem nearly certain to tweak the legislation and send it back to the Senate because it doesn't contain sufficient spending cuts.

Discussion: CNN, Washington Monthly, The Daily Beast, The Strata-Sphere, The New Civil Rights Movement, Mediaite, The National Memo, The Hill, The Maddow Blog, The Week, The Reality-Based Community, ABCNEWS, Weasel Zippers, ABCNEWS, The Fix and Prairie Weather

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:

Senate Passes Tax Increases on Wealthy Americans — WASHINGTON - The Senate, in a pre-dawn vote two hours after the deadline passed to avert automatic tax increases, overwhelmingly approved legislation Tuesday that would allow tax rates to rise only on affluent Americans …

Discussion: News Desk, The Daily Banter, Little Green Footballs, The Reaction, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Ross Douthat, Progressive Change …, Hot Air, The Moderate Voice, Conservatives4Palin, The Week and Politico

David Brooks / New York Times:

Another Fiscal Flop — Over the course of the 20th century, America built its welfare state. It was, by and large, a great achievement, expanding opportunity and security for millions. Unfortunately, as the population aged and health care costs surged, it became unaffordable.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Mother Jones, The American Conservative and Right Wing News

Jennifer Steinhauer / New York Times:

House Takes On Fiscal Cliff — As the new year began on Tuesday, Congressional efforts to head off tax increases on most working Americans shifted to the House, where members began to pore over details of a plan passed by the Senate in the early morning hours as Republican leaders began …

Discussion: The Maddow Blog, The Week and Balloon Juice

Matthew Boyle / BREITBART.COM:

FISCAL CLIFF DEAL: $1 IN SPENDING CUTS FOR EVERY $41 IN TAX INCREASES — According to the Congressional Budget Office, the last-minute fiscal cliff deal reached by congressional leaders and President Barack Obama cuts only $15 billion in spending while increasing tax revenues by $620 billion …

Discussion: Patterico's Pontifications, Chicago Boyz, Politico and Twitchy

William A. Jacobson / Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion:
Senate passes massive tax cut which raised taxes over $600 billion in middle of night without reading the bill

Discussion: Twitchy, Business Insider and Post Politics

Zeke Miller / BuzzFeed:
White House Claims Victory In Fiscal Deal

Discussion: Politico and The Daily Caller

William Kristol / Weekly Standard:
Say Yes to the Mess — The fiscal cliff deal that the Senate …

Discussion: CNNMoney.com, The Hill, Hot Air and The Daily Caller

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:
Tentative Deal Is Reached to Raise Taxes on the Wealthy

Discussion: The National Memo, Fox News, Outside the Beltway, Twitchy, Althouse, American Prospect, The Maddow Blog, UrbanGrounds, Daily Kos, Taegan Goddard's … and Wonkblog

CBS News:
Fiscal cliff deal heads to House after Senate vote

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Michelle Malkin, Prairie Weather and Calculated Risk

Fox News:
Fiscal crisis measure now heads to the House for approval

Discussion: protein wisdom and Fox News Insider

Jennifer Bendery / The Huffington Post:
Fiscal Cliff Deal Reached: White House, Hill Leaders Agree To Delay Sequester By Two Months

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Taylor Marsh, New York Post, Firedoglake, AMERICAblog, Alan Colmes'Alan Colmes', Post Politics and The Plum Line

Leigh Ann Caldwell / CBS News:
It's official: Deal reached on “fiscal cliff”

Discussion: Associated Press, Firedoglake, his vorpal sword and TalkLeft

Paul Krugman:

Perspective on the Deal — To make sense of what just happened, we need to ask what is really at stake, and how much difference the budget deal makes in the larger picture. — So, what are the two sides really fighting about? Surely the answer is, the future of the welfare state.

Discussion: The Plum Line, Campaign for America's Future, The Agonist, Hot Air, Brad DeLong, ABCNEWS, The New Republic, Economist's View and Booman Tribune

Donovan Slack / Politico:

White House declares victory — The White House issued a “fact sheet” statement Tuesday declaring the fiscal cliff agreement a victory, though the House has yet to vote on the measure. — “At this make or break moment for the middle class, the President achieved a bipartisan solution …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Weasel Zippers and The Hinterland Gazette

Suzy Khimm / Wonkblog:

Your fiscal cliff deal cheat sheet — The White House and the Senate have finalized the details of their deal to avert the fiscal cliff. The bill basically follows the framework that came out earlier this afternoon from the McConnell-Biden talks, with key additional details.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, neo-neocon, Daily Kos, Taegan Goddard's Wonk Wire, PoliPundit.com and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:

Senate Democrats will reject House changes to tax bill, aides say — Senate Democratic leaders say they will reject any House effort to amend a fiscal cliff deal that passed the upper chamber with overwhelming support on New Year's Day. — “The House Republicans have two choices …

Discussion: AMERICAblog, ABCNEWS and Taegan Goddard's …

Pete Kasperowicz / The Hill:
Focus now turns to the House

Discussion: Booman Tribune and The Impolitic

Ian Swanson / The Hill:
Senate to hold New Year's Eve vote on Biden-GOP fiscal cliff deal

Discussion: Politico and Post Politics

Peter Baker / New York Times:

View From the Left: Obama ‘Kept Giving Stuff Away’ — President Obama's fiscal deal with Republicans has touched off a fresh wave of grievance among disappointed liberals who complained that he caved in on taxes and sent a signal that he would ultimately surrender on other priorities as he prepared to open his second term.

Discussion: The Agonist and Hullabaloo

David A. Graham / The Atlantic Online:

Joe Biden: The Most Influential Vice President in History? — From the fiscal cliff to gun control to Afghanistan, Scranton's favorite son has transformed himself from affable gaffer to West Wing powerhouse. — Kevin Lamarque/Reuters — Barack Obama just can't get enough out of Joe Biden these days.

Discussion: Alan Colmes'Alan Colmes', The Week and Daily Kos

Ezra Klein / Wonkblog:
Wonkbook: Everything you need to know about the fiscal cliff deal

Discussion: JustOneMinute, The Mahablog and Angry Bear

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

Discussion: ctj.org, Wonkblog, The Gateway Pundit, Chicago Tribune and Associated Press

Robert Pear / New York Times:

Employers Must Offer Family Care, Affordable or Not — WASHINGTON — In a long-awaited interpretation of the new health care law, the Obama administration said Monday that employers must offer health insurance to employees and their children, but will not be subject to any penalties if family coverage is unaffordable to workers.

Discussion: Via Meadia, JustOneMinute and The Raw Story