Rangel concedes for this year

I would rather see the people not hit by the AMT [and] then come back and fight again for pay-go and to close the loopholes and pay for the AMT probably with the extenders.

That's the comment by Charles Rangel after the Senate rejected by 48 - 46 an attempt to attach his "paid for" AMT patch as an amendment to the omnibus spending bill. He's now willing to drop the pay-go requirement for the one-year extension, and would bring it back for next year's round. Reportedly it's the "blue dog" conservative Democrats in the House who are now resisting this change of course.

Congress was hoping to start Christmas vacation tomorrow. There's not much time to get this AMT mess solved for the 2007 tax year. But they must enjoy it, or they would simply eliminate this tax anachronism.