ANOTHER LOOK BACK. The Washington Post’s Dana Milbank on the Tea Party and President Obama’s Commission of Fiscal Responsibility and Reform [deficit commission]: “Paradoxically, the Tea Party may be the obstacle blocking the way toward a shrunken government and reduced debt.”

Hmm. Of the seven members of the deficit commission who voted against the Commission's proposal, 4 were Democrats. The three Republicans (Ryan, Hensarling, and Camp) who voted against did so because the recommendations didn't go far enough to reduce spending, especially with respect to healthcare. All three, however, found elements of the recommendations appealing, and all three believed that the Commission recommendations should go to Congress for study.

On the other side, Democrat Representative Jan Schakowsky, also voting no, offered a (Democrat) alternative proposal that included more taxes, more spending.

I don't think the Tea Party is the obstacle.