That appears to be the scuttlebutt from Capitol Hill. Washington Post: Senior Republicans say they will be forced to retreat on taxes if President Obama wins a second term in November, clearing the biggest obstacle to a deal with Democrats to defuse a year-end budget bomb that threatens to rock the U.S. economy. Republicans have long resisted tax increases of any kind. But taxes are a major battleground in the campaign between Obama and Republican Mitt Romney, Capitol Hill veterans say, and the victor will be able to claim a mandate for his policies. "This is a referendum on taxes," said Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), a senior member of the House Budget Committee. "If the president wins reelection, taxes are going up" for the nation's wealthiest households, and "there's not a lot we can do about that." With Election Day still more than six weeks away and the president holding a thin lead in national polls, Republicans say they are not conceding that an Obama victory is the...(Read Full Post)