If all the recent wrangling over the fiscal cliff has revealed anything, it's how tense and strained President Obama's relationship is with Republicans in Congress.

A rough two-month stretch has left Speaker John A. Boehner facing a nascent rebellion within his party ahead of a vote on whether he will continue to lead the House when the 113th Congress convenes Thursday.

Enjoy the communal sigh of relief while it lasts, America. Sure, the endlessly-discussed "fiscal cliff" has been averted thanks to a flawed, 13th-hour deal -- but the high-stakes partisan wrangling is just beginning. We'll get to the road ahead in a moment, but first, a word or two about the compromise itself. Let's stipulate right out of the gate that it stinks. It was jammed through in late night votes at the last possible minute, it scratches the Left's "fairness" itch to no constructive end, and the CBO calcluates its tax hike to spending cut ratio is roughly 41 to 1. Pathetic.

Despite being weakened in the fiscal-cliff debate, House Speaker John Boehner appears to be on track to re-election as the nation's top Republican on Thursday.

So I remember thinking, when Congress and President Obama concocted the supercommittee on the deficit -- and the fiscal cliff as a last resort if all else failed -- that it was a generally boneheaded, albeit necessary, idea.
Conceived in desperation as a way to come up with a deal to raise the debt ceiling (and pay our bills) in the summer of 2011, it seemed like the only way out: a way to agree to do what needed to be done in the short term and to force action in the long term on the bigger picture.

Think the fiscal cliff caused an awful lot of uncertainty and held back the economy? How about three more cliff-like deadlines over the next three months?
That's what's in store. The bill approved by the House late Tuesday doesn't address the debt ceiling and temporarily puts off most of the automatic spending cuts otherwise scheduled to take effect Wednesday.
Here is what's still ahead:
1. Debt Ceiling: Congress has to raise the debt ceiling soon. Real soon.

As ugly as they were, the “fiscal cliff negotiations produced something Washington hadn't seen in a long time: strongly bipartisan votes in the House and the Senate on a big, contentious issue.

The U.S. Congress prevented hefty tax hikes and spending cuts with a "fiscal cliff" deal this week, but grassroots conservatives are already seeking 2014 primary challengers for high-profile Republican lawmakers who backed the deal.

The deal significantly raises taxes on the rich, with no expiration date. It extends tax credits for the poor and the middle class. It provides more jobless benefits. Largely overlooked, it extends an alternative-energy tax credit that has helped create a clean-energy boom.

Americans are in a panic. Crowds throng gun shows and shops. Blue-chip companies fast-forward 2013s dividends to 2012. Investors cash out profits, estate planners report a rush of people trying to beat higher inheritance taxes and lobbyists line up for favors.