On the principle of the thing, you could say that Democrats held their ground on the essentials -- no cuts in benefits -- while Republicans have just voted for a tax increase for the first time in decades. So why the bad taste in progressives' mouths? It has less to do with where Obama ended up than with how he got there. He kept drawing lines in the sand, then erasing them and retreating to a new position. And his evident desire to have a deal b ...

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On the principle of the thing, you could say that Democrats held their ground on the essentials -- no cuts in benefits -- while Republicans have just voted for a tax increase for the first time in decades. So why the bad taste in progressives' mouths? It has less to do with where Obama ended up than with how he got there. He kept drawing lines in the sand, then erasing them and retreating to a new position. And his evident desire to have a deal before hitting the essentially innocuous fiscal cliff bodes very badly for the confrontation looming in a few weeks over the debt ceiling. If Obama stands his ground in that confrontation, this deal won't look bad in retrospect. If he doesn't, yesterday will be seen as the day he began throwing away his presidency and the hopes of everyone who supported him.

Authors Website: http://sheilastuff.blogspot.com

Authors Bio:

Sheila Samples is an Oklahoma writer and a former civilian US Army Public Information Officer. She is a Managing Editor for OpEd News, and a regular contributor for a variety of Internet sites.