Earlier this week, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) sought to overcome the GOP’s resistance to voting on a Senate-passed measure that would extend Bush-era tax cuts to middle class Americans by introducing a discharge petition that, if signed by 218 members, could force the House to take-up the measure. Some Republicans, weary of the overwhelming public support for raising rates on the richest two percent of Americans, have urged the GOP leadership to allow the vote, but have yet to formally sign Pelosi’s discharge. Republican leadership continues to insist on extending tax cuts for all Americans, while President Obama said he would only sign legislation that would maintain reductions for individuals who earn $200,000 or less and couples who make $250,000 or less.

But in a recent photo-op with constituents, Rep. John Duncan (R-TN) explained why Republicans are refusing to give in. The Tennessee Republican admitted that he won’t vote to extend tax cuts to 98 percent of Americans because doing so would cede control to Democrats:

CONSTITUENT 1: Are you going to sign the discharge petition?

DUNCAN: Ummm…Oh no, I’m not. No Ma’am. I’m not about to sign the discharge petition.

CONSTITUENT 2: Well if you sign the discharge petition, you’ll immediately etend the tax cuts for the middle class.

CONSTITUENT 1: Yea, why would you not want to do that? [...]

DUNCAN: It would take too long to explain that. I’m not going to give control of the floor to the Democrats.

Watch it:

If Congress does not act before the end of the year, taxes will increase for all Americans. Polls show that “nearly half” of Americans believe tax cuts “for people earning more than $250,000 should expire while they should continue for those earning less, while 32 percent said the tax cuts should continue for everyone.”

(HT: BuzzFeed)

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has joined the growing number of Republicans calling on House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and GOP leadership to allow the Bush tax cuts to expire on the richest Americans as part of a package to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff. In an interview with Politico, Paul said he is urging the GOP to vote “present” on such a package:

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he was urging House Republicans to accept passage of the Democratic tax bill by voting “present” on the measure. At that point, the bill would come to the Senate, where he expected it also would pass on partisan lines.

“And then the Democrats are the party of higher taxes and we’re still the party of lower taxes,” Paul said in an interview. “And we have elections over that and people decide which party they like best.”

Republican Rep. Tom Cole (OK) was the first to publicly to break ranks and ask leadership to immediately extend the middle-income Bush tax cuts and since then at least four other colleagues have come out in support of the idea. However, none have signed the discharge petition filed by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) that would force the House to vote on the middle-income tax cut extension.