Doyle explains tax cut vote

In a detailed talk with Chris Potter at City Paper, Mike Doyle explains his vote for a resolution opposing Obama's tax cut compromise with the GOP:

"This has been brewing for quite some time," Doyle says of Democratic opposition. Not only do House Democrats oppose the terms of the deal, he says, but they feel they deserved a larger role in negotiating them.

"There's been a frustration for House Democrats," says Doyle. "We've really carried this President’s agenda, only to watch it languish in the Senate." That's been true on a slew of progressive causes. But in this case, Doyle says, they had no role in crafting the agenda at all.

Under the terms of the deal, Obama has agreed to extend tax breaks on the wealthy; in exchange, Republicans have agreed to support an extension in unemployment benefits and other aid for middle-class families.

But "Parts of the package were just too much," Doyle says.

There's much more in the full piece (including a description of the tiny payroll tax cuts workers will see).