The looming expiration of the so called “Bush” tax cuts has the Democrats in turmoil, as the left has reacted with anger to the broad hints from the Obama Administration that they are prepared for compromise with Republicans on this matter. The Huffington Post broke a story that really should have been obvious to see from the Presidents last weekly talk on the subject. Based on that I predicted last week that this deal was obviously coming.

The Huffington story quoted senior advisor David Axlerod:

“We have to deal with the world as we find it,” Axelrod said during an unusually candid and reflective 90-minute interview in his office, steps away from the Oval Office. “The world of what it takes to get this done.”

“There are concerns,” he added, that Congress will continue to kick the can down the road in the future by passing temporary extensions for the wealthy time and time again. “But I don’t want to trade away security for the middle class in order to make that point.”

The Administration attempted to dial back those comments ever so slightly, with Axelrod saying that there was “no news” in his statements to the Huffington Post. Politico, where Axelrod made the no news comment, posted a story detailing the rage on the left about a potential Obama compromise on the tax cut issue.

“Obama caving on the high income tax-cut issue guarantees that he will attract an intra-party opponent from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party,” Boston University law professor Cornelius Hurley wrote on POLITICO’s Arena. “The White House misreads the mood of the country. Tea partiers do not reflect that mood. Independents and Democrats disenchanted with Obama’s lack of conviction do.”

That is not all: The Politico story quoted Jane Hamsher from FireDogLake.

Jane Hamsher, a frequent White House critic, posted reaction last night to Axelrod’s comments under the headline, “Obama Twists Own Arm, Says ‘Uncle’ to Extending Bush Tax Cuts.” “If he’s the ‘political genius’ guiding the Democrats these days, they should consider themselves lucky it wasn’t 100 seats” that they lost in the House, Hamsher wrote on her blog FireDogLake.

The deal will get done, because both sides need a deal. I am not sure if the left thinks the Republicans will blink, or if they really feel that the rates should be allowed to go up for all. But the President will take no chances, and will make that deal relatively quickly. That will continue to bring howls, but they will soon be eclipsed by the howling over the findings of the deficit reduction panel.