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Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA)

Last night, the House approved President Obama’s fiscal deal, which would extend tax breaks for individuals earning up to $30,000 a month and enact a weak estate tax without resolving the debt ceiling or sequestration issues.

One of the lone progressive Democrats who opposed the deal was Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA). He gave an impassioned speech about how the deal is setting up three additional hostage situations because it does not resolve the debt ceiling, the expiration of the continuing budget resolution, or the sequestration. “We will look back on this night and regret it,” he thundered:

MORAN:Ai??Many of us feel, certainly on this side, that the deficit does not matter, but it does matter because we have another deficit — a deficit in the investment and education of our children, a deficit in the training and skills of our work force, and the physical infrastructure of our country. We will have none of those resources to make that investment after we make this vote tonight. And the problem is, we have set up three more fiscal cliffs. We ‘re gonna have to deal with the debt ceiling, We’re gonna have to deal with the continuing resolution expiration, and we’re gonna have to deal with the sequester. And all that’s left is spending cuts. And all that’s left to ask ourselves is, what programs do we cut and how deep do we cut them? We have to look back on this night and regret it, notwithstanding the fact that 95% of us will vote for it.

Watch it:

Recall that, under the terms of the deal, middle class Americans will actually see a larger tax rate increase than Americans earning $400,000 a year, thanks to the expiration of the payroll tax cut …

Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK)

Today on MSNBC, leading House Republican Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) said that Obama’s tax deal — that extends tax cuts even for people making $30,000 a month and enacts a weaker estate tax than otherwise would’ve gone into law — has resulted in the President giving away all his leverage:

TOM COLE: Again, I would prefer not to raise taxes on anybody. But we protected almost every American. We did it at a higher income level than the President campaigned on. And again, frankly, we’ve denied him I think his most important piece of leverage in any negotiation going forward.Ai??So I particularly like that part. I understand unemployment extension. I prefer, you know, a more focused effort in that regard. But we do have parts of the country where that’s necessary and it’s a fair compromise. The entitlement issue, just too much to deal with I think in one piece of legislation. But again, still sequester is in front of us. The continuing resolution runs out the end of march and obviously the debt ceiling. All of those things honestly are Republican leverage not Democratic so I think there will be opportunities to deal with the spending issue next year. Honestly I expect that will be the dominant issue along with trying to overhaul the tax code going forward. So that’s usually pretty good ground for Republicans.

Watch it:

Also note that Cole says he specifically thinks that now that Obama has given away his leverage, Republicans can go after “entitlements” — meaning Medicare and Social Security benefits — during the debt ceiling and sequester negotiations.

President Obama has endorsed a tax deal that would give individuals up to $400,000 an extension of the Bush tax cuts. The plan would also reportedly allow the rich to keep a lower estate tax than is currently planned for 2013 (55% for estates worth more than $1 million). This is a tax cut for many rich Americans.

Because the payroll tax cut is expiring and the Make Work Pay tax cut is not coming back, most working Americans will also see a tax increase. The most galling thing is that 98 percent of Americans will actually see a larger tax increase than some of the richest Americans. Working with our friends at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, we compiled the following chart to demonstrate this:

Our polling of swing states shows that a large majority of voters want to see taxes raised on incomes above $250,000.

The White House is moving towards strikingAi??a deal that would only end the Bush tax cuts on incomes above $400,000 while enacting a watered-down estate tax. These measures offer a major tax cut to the rich over what is currently set to take place in 2013.

Major progressive groups denounced this proposal in statements and emails today.

Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC):

Ai??On behalf of nearly a million progressives nationwide, we wanted to emphasize that this is a moment to stand on principle.

There has always been room for negotiation, but throughout this debate progressives have had 2 bright-line positions: Tax rates on those making $250,000 must go up to at least the Clinton rates and there must be no cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security benefits.

The president ran on and won on $250,000 twice. Voters across the country overwhelmingly agree with the $250,000 threshold (seeAi??http://2014polling.com). And in real human costs, the billions lost by raising the threshold to $400,000 will come out of the pockets of grandparents and working families across the nation. Meanwhile, individuals making over $30,000 per month would get a tax break.

Democrats hold the cards, and our leverage increases in less than 10 hours if we hold strong.

The public is paying attention, and we urge all Democrats to stand on principle at this moment.Ai??The current deal violates progressive principles.Ai??It should be opposed. — Adam Green and Stephanie Taylor, PCCC co-founders

MoveOn (excerpt from e-mail to members):

MoveOn members have consistently stood behind President Obama’s campaign pledge to return the tax rates for the wealthiest Americansai??i??those making more than $250,000 a yearai??i??to what they were under President Clinton. A last-minute deal like the one reported in the press could make the Bush Tax Cuts permanent for those making $450,000 a year.

When Republicans tried to cut …

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA)

There are reports that the White House is preparing to offer a deal that would only end the Bush tax cuts on incomes above $400,000 while enacting a watered-down estate tax. These measures offer a major tax cut to the rich over what is currently set to take place in 2013 — tomorrow.

Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) took to the floor just now and denounced this sort of deal:

HARKIN:Ai??Mr. President, I was disturbed to read in The Washington Post this morning that some kind of agreements are being made here. Somehow that democrats have agreed to raise the level of, from $250,000 to $450,000, and that somehow there’s been an agreement reached that we would keep the estate taxes at the $5 million level, at 35%. Mr. President, this is one Democrat that doesn’t agree with that at all.

[…]Ai??Again, if we’re going to have some kind of a deal, the deal must be one that really does favor the middle class, the real middle class, those that are making $50,000, $60,000, $70,000 a year. that’s the real middle class in america. As I see this thing developing, quite frankly, as I’ve said before, no deal is better than a bad deal. and this looks like a very bad deal the way this is shaping up.

Watch it:

Editor’s note:Ai??If you like what you see below…We have a tiny staff, but we fight hard and think big.Ai??Consider being a $3 monthly donor to continue our effective activism in 2013.

#1. Senator-Elect Elizabeth Warren!

Doesn’t that feel great to say? PCCC members held “Draft Warren” house parties across Massachusetts, and tens of thousands of us signed a petition urging Elizabeth Warren to run for Senate. Then, we made 574,000 calls for her campaign and contributed more than $1.15 million dollars (through 69,000 grassroots donations) to help her win! As she said right after the election: “PCCC members were with me before there was a beginning. Thanks to you all.” Now we’ll stand with her as she holds Wall Street accountable from her position on the Senate Banking Committee!

#2. We Won…A Lot. Ai??

In 2012, over 30 of our endorsed candidates won races for Senate, House, Governor, and State Legislature. We supported these candidates with deep staffing and infrastructure help, phone calls, and volunteer hours. Over 1,000 media stories were written about our work this cycle. And through 250,000 small-dollar donations, we donated $2.7 million to candidates. PCCC members got a whopping 73% return on our investment. Compare that to Karl Rove, who got a 1% return on his investment. You are more politically savvy than Karl Rove. Congratulations!

Please consider being a $3 monthly donor to continue our effective activism in 2013.

#3. Call Out The Vote!

Over 3,200 volunteers made 2 million phone calls for progressive candidates through Call Out The Vote, our national phone program. Our ambitious goal was 1 million calls, but we doubled …

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

Two weeks ago, President Obama put major Social Security benefits cuts on the table by endorsing the “chained CPI.” This policy wouldAi??lower cost-of-living adjustments for seniors on Social Security.

Hundreds of thousands of Progressive Change Campaign Committee members took action to defend Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. In the past weeks, thousands of them called congressional offices demanding that these benefit cuts be taken off the table.

Now, it looks like we’ve succeeded. Today, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) denounced the inclusion of any Social Security benefit cuts in a short term agreement and flatly ruled them out after Republicans demanded them:

Earlier Sunday, negotiations between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell suffered a ai???major setbackai??? after Republicans demanded the inclusion of a new method for calculating entitlement benefits as part of the cliff package, according to Democrats. […]

ai???The one thing I do want to mention is weai??i??re not going to have any Social Security cuts at this stage. That just doesnai??i??t seen appropriate,ai??? Reid said. ai???Weai??i??re willing to make difficult concessions as part of a balanced, comprehensive agreement, but will not agree to cut Social Security benefits as part of a smaller, short-term agreement, especially if that agreement gives more handouts to the rich.ai???

Today, in an email to PCCC members, we wrote, “Today’s victory shows that activism works. In 2013, we’ll keep fighting any proposed cuts to these benefits.”

We have a tiny staff, but we fight hard and think big. You can help continue our work in 2013 by making a $3 donation — or $3 monthly donation — here. Thanks so much!

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

Unemployment benefits for two million Americans are set to expire this year. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) refuses to allow a vote on the extension because he wants to see the benefits coupled with the extension of tax cuts for the rich as well as certain spending cuts.

Last month, the Democratic staff of the House Ways and Means Committee Ai??released a report looking at how many Americans would lose their benefits if they unemployment insurance was not extended. According to their research, as many as 24,000 Kentuckians will lose their benefits this week because of McConnell’s obstruction.

The state’s unemployment rate remains a very high 8.2 percent, and there simply aren’t enough jobs for everyone who is unemployed.

If the sequester goes into effect on January 1st, we will see over time a $500 billion reduction in security spending (which includes the Pentagon and State Department) over a ten year period.

In Politico this morning, defense lobbyists who make their money from large military spending are sounding increasingly worried about these cuts becoming a reality.

But remember that Pentagon spending is the largest portion of discretionary spending, and that the United States spends more on its military than the rest of the world combined.

In fact, leading defense experts from the right and left have actually recommended that we Ai??cut military expenditures by twice the amount that the sequester reduces spending. In 2010, Reps. Barney Frank (D-MA) and Ron Paul (R-TX) assembled the Sustainable Defense Task Force (SDTF) to look at the Pentagon budget.

They brought together experts from the right-wing Cato Institute, the fiscally conservative Taxpayers for Common Sense, the Center for American Progress (which was represented on the commission by Reagan Pentagon official Lawrence Korb), and other organizations to look at what America’s real defense needs in the 21st century are.

The Sustainable Defense Task Force concluded that the United States can and should safely trim its military budget by $1 trillionover the next ten years. It ends its report by writing, “Our military budget should be sized to defend us.Ai??For this end, we do not need to spend $700 billion aAi??year ai??i?? or anything close. We can be safe for much less/”

Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY)

Ever since President Obama put Social Security benefit cuts via the “chained CPI” on the table last week, there has been an uprising from progressive groups and Members of Congress opposed to this change.

On Friday, Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) protested the proposal on Facebook, saying he has never supported it in his 20 years ofAi??serviceAi??and that he is “not about to start now”:

We set up an ActBlue page to highlight and reward bold progressive members of Congress who are speaking out publicly today.Ai??Check them out and donate $3 to them here.

Click hereAi??to pledge to hold any Democrat who agrees to a deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid benefits accountable.

Click hereAi??to call your Member of Congress and demand that they oppose this bad deal.