Tax cuts likely to stay in effect

From the New York Times:

Senate Rejects Obama�s Tax Plan, Setting Stage for Deal
The Senate on Saturday rejected President Obama�s proposal to extend the Bush-era tax breaks for all but the wealthiest taxpayers, a triumph for Republicans who have long called for continuing the income tax cuts for everyone.

The Senate�s verdict set the stage for a possible deal in the coming days to extend the reduced tax rates even on high incomes temporarily, perhaps for up to two years. But with Senate Democrats and the White House badly splintered, and some lawmakers increasingly angry at the idea of sustaining President George W. Bush�s economic policies, the prospects of a compromise remain uncertain.

If Congress does not act, the tax rates expire for everyone on Dec. 31, meaning an increase across the board. The rate in the lowest bracket would rise to 15 percent from 10 percent and in the highest bracket to 39.6 percent from 35 percent.

Something buried in the article but veeeery interesting:

Republicans voted unanimously against the House-passed bill, and they were joined by four Democrats � Senators Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, Ben Nelson of Nebraska, and Jim Webb of Virginia � as well as by Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, independent of Connecticut.

These Democrats are not newbie lightweights. If the like of Feingold and Nelson come over to the other side, that means the Democrats are not a monolithic bloc and that there is some serious dissent in the ranks. Obama really has lost his halo...