White House spokeswoman Amy Brundage accused Republicans of "holding middle-class tax cuts hostage in order to borrow $700 billion for tax breaks to the millionaires and billionaires at a time of record deficits."
"The American people will be reminded of that every day," Brundage said.
Don Stewart, a spokesman for Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, blamed the delay on division within the Democrats' ranks.
"If anyone can show me where there's a Democratic bill to hold hostage, I'll buy them lunch," he said.
Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the Finance Committee, called the move to delay grappling with the tax-cut extension a "dereliction of duty" by Democrats.
Vote Prediction
A vote on the issue will occur before Jan. 1, said Senator Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat.
"We will have a vote and have the fight before the end of the year," she said. Democrats "are very committed to extending the middle-class tax cuts but not the top rates because that hasn't created jobs," she said.
The Senate "will come back in November and stay in session as long as it takes to get this done," Jim Manley, a spokesman for Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, said in a statement last night.
Chuck Marr, a tax and budget analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a Washington research group that usually sides ideologically with Democrats, said he expected Congress to reach an extension agreement before the year ends.
"There's a very low probability" all of the tax cuts will expire, Marr said. Aaron said he favors keeping all of the reductions in place for a year or two, and then repeal them all. Some Democratic lawmakers, including Conrad, have endorsed a temporary extension of all the rates.