If anyone would like a change of pace from the typical debates we've seen over this "fiscal cliff" deal and who made out and who didn't, the upcoming debacle over raising the debt ceiling and what's really lead to the lack of upward mobility and record income disparity in the United States, I'd highly recommend you set aside some time to watch at least the first few segments from Up With Chris Hayes from this Saturday.

Unlike most of the brain-draining discussions we're treated to on the majority of our corporate media and despite the presence of guest Veronique de Rugy appearing again in less than a month on Hayes' show, I don't think most of our readers here will be disappointed with the discussions that went on.

As Hayes has been talking about for some time now, if you really want to know who our members of Congress represent, forget the rhetoric and look at how they vote and who they protect when we see them finally act and not just what we hear them saying during their posturing on television. As was pointed out during the discussions here, despite the fact that President Obama talked about protecting the middle class in this deal, most Americans are going to see their taxes go up with the expiration of the payroll tax holiday.

As the panel members discussed during the segments, there was bipartisan agreement on that for some good reasons, like not wanting to undermine the integrity of the Social Security trust fund. But as was also noted, that should have been replaced with a renewal of the Making Work Pay tax credit, which you can read more about here: Making Work Pay vs. the payroll tax cut, in two charts.

Sadly, our Congress is still showing themselves to be more worried about their rich campaign donors and this deal to make it through their last round of Shock Doctrine governance was no exception.

You can read more on all of this from Hayes' blog here and more video below the fold: The fiscal cliff deal: A tax hike for the real middle class:

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Ed Schultz spoke to Rep. Jan Schakowsky and Jonathan Alter about the tentative deal to extend the payroll tax holiday and unemployment insurance. When asked why it appears Republicans are finally giving in and willing to pass the measures without demanding offsets, both Schakowsky and Alter noted the obvious; they're looking at their poll numbers and hearing from their constituents and responding to the fact that the electorate is fed up with their obstruction.

Lawmakers reach tentative deal on payroll tax, jobless benefits:

House-Senate talks on renewing a payroll tax cut that delivers about $20 a week to the average worker yielded a tentative agreement Tuesday, with lawmakers hopeful of unveiling the pact Wednesday and sending the measure to President Barack Obama as early as this week.

Under the outlines of the emerging agreement, a 2 percentage-point cut in the Social Security payroll tax would be extended through the end of the year, with the nearly $100 billion cost added to the deficit. Jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed would be renewed as well, with the $30 billion or so cost paid for in part through auctioning broadcast spectrum to wireless companies and requiring federal workers to contribute more toward their pensions.

Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, said it was described to lawmakers as a tentative agreement.

The payroll tax cut and renewing jobless benefits were key planks in Obama's jobs program, which was announced in September. The payroll tax cut benefits 160 million Americans and delivers a tax cut of about $20 a week for a typical worker making $50,000 a year. People making a $100,000 salary would get a $2,000 tax cut.

The deal would not only be a win for Obama but would take the payroll tax fight — which put Republicans on the defensive — off the table for the fall election campaign. Read on...

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House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) said on Sunday that he may block an extension of the payroll tax holiday if President Barack Obama does not approve the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

"We're going to do everything we can to make sure that this Keystone pipeline is in fact approved," the Speaker told Fox News host Chris Wallace.

"Are you saying you may link the Keystone pipeline to extending the payroll tax holiday?" Wallace asked.

"We may," Boehner admitted. "As I say, all options are on the table."

"Why not demand that if he wants the payroll tax cut, he has to approve it?" Wallace urged. "In other words, it comes with it. You want the payroll tax cut, the pipeline goes with it."

"All options are on the table," Boehner repeated.

Wallace also noted that during his upcoming annual State of the Union speech, Obama would ask for more help for the middle class, propose that the wealth pay more taxes and suggest a "grand bargain" to cut the deficit and raise the nation's debt limit.

"It sounds to me like the same old policies that we've seen," Boehner complained. "And if that's what the president's going to talk about Tuesday night, I think it's pathetic."

Last week, the Obama administration rejected TransCanada Corp.’s plan to pipe Canadian oil sands through sensitive environmental areas to Gulf Coast refineries. The 2 percentage point payroll tax cut for 160 million workers expires in February.

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From this Friday's PBS Newshour, David Brooks with a bit of revisionist history on what happened over the last year that led to the House Republicans eventually caving and passing the two month extension on the payroll tax bill that was passed overwhelmingly by the Senate.

Brooks conveniently forgot to mention that the only "stand on principle" we saw from Republicans is that they're not willing to raise taxes on the rich... ever, no matter who else suffers. Brooks also wants the PBS audience to believe that Republicans are actually concerned about preserving Social Security, when their party has been intent on either destroying it or privatizing it since the day it was enacted. They absolutely hate every social safety net we've got in this country and would like to see all of them destroyed and are to this day still using the politics of divide and conquer with the working class, demonizing "the welfare state" and trying to characterize the unemployed as lazy.

Brian Beutler did a nice summary of what actually happened over at TPM which you can read here -- How The Payroll Tax Fight Descended Into Chaos. Give that a read for a review and then take a look at Brooks' claptrap below the fold.

To his credit, Mark Shields who typically doesn't do a very good job at pushing back at Brooks' talking points at all, did do a good job of pointing out the hypocrisy by Republicans who never showed an iota of concern for how the Bush tax cuts or the invasion of Iraq were going to be paid for, but now they're demanding that any help for the working class or the unemployed is paid for because they suddenly found religion on budget deficits.

Transcript via PBS below the fold.

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It looks like Boehner blinked on the payroll tax holiday extension -- BREAKING: House Republicans Cave, Agree To Two-Month Payroll Tax Cut Extension:

A top Senate Democratic aide says House Republicans have privately offered up the terms of their surrender on the payroll tax cut, pending sign off from their notoriously unwieldy caucus.

As Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) suggested Thursday morning, it will involve House Republicans passing a temporary extension of the payroll tax cut (and unemployment insurance and reimbursement rates for Medicare physicians) in exchange for Senate Dems agreeing to a formal conference committee to work out a year-long extension of all items.

The temporary extension won’t be identical to the one Senate Dems passed. It will differ in very minor technical ways. House Republicans have already rejected the bipartisan Senate compromise bill, so they’ll have to draw up essentially the same bill from scratch, pass it in the House and then have the Senate readopt it by unanimous consent.

In exchange, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) will agree to a formal conference committee. The House will bring its partisan, one-year extenders bill to the table (complete with policy riders and pay-fors that cut programs like Medicare) and the Senate will bring the bipartisan legislation that passed overwhelmingly on Saturday.

This is a fairly minor concession for Reid. He’s been on the record for days now saying he’d resume negotiations on a full-year extension as soon as the House passed the Senate bill. He’s saying that instead of taking the lead on those negotiations with Boehner and McConnell, that a formal conference committee would get first bite at the apple.

As the CNN reporters noted in the clip above, it looks like House Republicans were taking some heat from their own constituents who were upset over them over their obstruction.

Karoli adds:

This is a huge defeat for John Boehner and the House Tea Party Republicans. How big? Via Steve Benen:

If Boehner were a stronger, more effective House Speaker, this fiasco could have been easily avoided. He could have told his caucus this was a fight they were likely to lose, so passing the Senate bill quickly was the smart course of action. But he couldn’t — Boehner takes orders; he doesn’t give them.

It’s what helps make this story a disaster, not only for Republicans in general, but also for John Boehner personally. As he surrenders this afternoon, Boehner becomes The Speaker Who Has No Clothes.

He stuck out his neck, vowing not to cave, knowing he’d likely have to cave anyway. Boehner than waited until the pressure became unbearable — after he’d lost face and friends — and walked away with his tail between his legs.

Neither party has had a Speaker this feeble in modern times. His instincts told him to take the deal over the weekend, but Boehner allowed himself to be pushed around by his unhinged caucus, then get pushed around by Democrats, then get pushed around by his allies, then get pushed around by Senate Republicans.

How big a disaster was this for Boehner? Keep an eye on whether Eric Cantor’s travel schedule changes over the holidays.

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Rep. Jan Schakowsky takes GOP to task and slams them as the Grinches who stole your Christmas for their political games being played over the extension of the payroll tax holiday.

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From CNN's The Situation Room, even Sen. John McCain admitted that this gridlock over the payroll tax holiday extension is damaging the Republican Party. It looks like the House Republicans and John Boehner aren't earning themselves any friends in the Senate now that Boehner has caved to his obstructionist caucus that would prefer gridlock to giving working Americans a break on their taxes.

BLITZER: Very quickly on another subject, the payroll tax cut, the extension. You were among the 89 senators who voted to continue it for another two months. Your Republican colleagues in the House, they say they're not going to go along with that. Why are they wrong and you and your Republican colleagues in the Senate right?

MCCAIN: I think we have to recognize reality and that is we are not going to see the payroll tax cut expire on the first of January. And we have to accommodate to that reality. It would not be fair to the American people at this time.

And so, it seems to me that Republican leaders and Harry Reid and the speaker and Congresswoman Pelosi should sit down together with the administration and figure out a way through this. It is harming the Republican Party.

It is harming the view if it's possible anymore, of the American people about Congress and we've got to get this thing resolved and with the realization that the payroll tax cut must remain in effect. Not to mention the doc fix and unemployment insurance, yes.

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Good for MSNBC's Tamron Hall for giving the appropriate response to some of Rep. Jack Kingston's nonsense while trying to explain the games the Republican House is playing with refusing to pass a temporary extension of the payroll tax holiday.

After being asked by Hall about Sen. Scott Brown's statement that House Republicans are standing in the way of getting a deal done on the extension and playing politics to the detriment of the economy, Rep. Jack Kingston made this ridiculous remark.

KINGSTON: Here's the reality that we're in. The House is ready to compromise with the Senate. We have not voted on anything and left town. Our bill passed on a bipartisan basis last week. It has been rejected by the Senate. They've given us a two month extension. We don't think that's a good deal for the economy or the American people.

And what we're saying it, you know what? Let's go to conference. We've got ten days to work this out. And I would like to say I think the President should attend, because, what would happen if he showed some leadership and brought Mr. Boehner and Mr. Reid down to the White House, pulled out some eggnog, maybe some rum and cigars, pulled out It's a Wonderful Life DVD and said, alright guys, let's work this out for the American people...

To which Hall rightfully replied, “Are you kidding me?... You are talking about movies and eggnog and nonsense.” Hall went on to ask Kingston if he was really concerned about allowing the payroll tax holiday to expire or not.

Kingston proceeded to tie himself up on knots trying to explain what they were doing and avoiding directly answering her questions about the criticism that Republicans are making of their cohorts in the House with the games they're playing right now.

I can't believe Republicans are doing themselves any favors right now with trying to make these convoluted arguments about Congressional procedures and conference meetings, which frankly is going to go right over the heads of the average voters out there.

Kenneth already explained most of the details of what's been going on over the last couple of days. And Steve Benen has more why no one should take Kingston or any of the rest of them seriously on these "conferees." -- What the GOP conferees have in common:

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More kabuki theater from John Boehner and the House Republicans over the extension of the payroll tax holiday -- House GOP cancels plan to vote on Senate payroll tax bill:

The delay suggests GOP leaders did not have the votes to reject the Senate payroll tax bill.

House GOP leaders have decided to delay a vote on the Senate payroll tax bill until midday Tuesday, abandoning tentative plans to hold votes as late as 3 a.m. Tuesday morning.

House Rules Committee Chairman David Dreier (R-Calif.) told reporters that the delay was caused by a GOP conference meeting running two hours into overtime Monday evening. He said the House would convene at 9 a.m. on Tuesday.

House leaders also appear to be looking to avoid a separate, up-or-down vote on the Senate payroll tax bill. [...]

The Senate approved the measure in an overwhelming bipartisan 89-10 vote, and several Senate Republicans on Monday urged the House to approve the measure.

With Democrats planning to support the measure, the delay suggests Republicans were not certain they had the votes to reject the Senate bill, as Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) predicted they would on Monday.

TPM's Brian Beutler has more on how things may go from here -- Standoff: A Guide To The Ongoing Fight Over The Payroll Tax Cut:

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So much for the House Republicans reaching a deal on the extension of the payroll tax holiday and of unemployment benefits. Here's John Boehner caving to demands for more hostage taking by his caucus -- Boehner Says House G.O.P. Opposes Deal on Payroll Tax:

A day after the Senate overwhelmingly approved legislation to extend a payroll tax cut for two months, House Republicans made clear Sunday that they would not support the measure.

Speaker John A. Boehner, who had urged his members on Saturday to support the bill, did an about-face on Sunday and said he and other House Republicans were opposed to the temporary extension, part of a $33 billion package of bills that the Senate passed Saturday by an 89-to-10 vote. In addition to extending the payroll tax cut for millions of American workers, the legislation also extends unemployment benefits and avoid cuts in payments to doctors who accept Medicare. The measure would be effective through February.

But in an interview with NBC’s “Meet The Press’ on Sunday, Mr. Boehner said the two-month extension, would be “just kicking the can down the road.”

“It’s time to just stop, do our work, resolve the differences, and extend this for one year,” Mr. Boehner said. “How can you have tax policy for two months?”

Here's more from Steve Benen -- Republicans may yet kill middle-class tax cut:

The Hill reported that rank-and-file House Republicans “voiced extreme opposition” to the compromise.

This is what happens when American elect radical children to run a chamber of Congress.

Some House GOP leaders say they want an extension. A few rank-and-file House Republicans don’t want to be on the hook for a middle-class tax increase. If Boehner wanted to reach out to House Dems on this, he probably wouldn’t have much trouble pulling 218 votes together.

But that’s just not how the process works anymore. The Speaker isn’t calling the shots; he’s taking the orders. And as of yesterday, Boehner’s caucus told him this isn’t good enough.

The radicalized House GOP caucus doesn’t want a middle-class tax cut, and is only open to the possibility if they’re rewarded with a series of right-wing goodies. House Republicans said they’d demand an expedited Keystone decision, and Senate Republicans successfully negotiated that into the deal.

Now House Republicans are considering holding the deal hostage (again) to see what else they can get.

There were some sighs of relief yesterday morning, when it looked like we wouldn’t have to worry about the payroll issue again until February. That relief was clearly premature — one must never underestimate what the House GOP is capable of.

Transcript via NBC below the fold.

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