The Coming Republican Civil War

Written By: Jeffrey T. Kuhner  |  Posted: Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010

        The tax deal has exposed major divisions within the Republican Party. It has triggered deep fissures in GOP ranks - especially among many potential candidates for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.

        Establishment Republicans have embraced the deal. They argue that letting the George W. Bush-era tax cuts expire would threaten the nascent recovery and even could plunge the economy into a "double-dip" recession. It is bad policy and bad economics to impose massive tax increases during an economic downturn. This is the argument being made by the congressional GOP leadership, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. They have aligned themselves with inside-the-Beltway Republican elites - and against the Tea Party.

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