*Closing in on payroll tax deal

That's according to a series of tweets by Chad Pergram of Fox News - probably a good source on this. A senior House aide said, "The end is near." The idea would be to pass legislation that's virtually the same as what got through in the Senate, with the condition that Senate Democrats appoint conferees who would work through details. The measure would be passed by unanimous consent, which means that the entire House doesn't have to come back to Washington. The House Republicans don't have much of a choice - they've been under fire, even by the likes of Karl Rove, for blocking the two-month extension. (via Business Insider)

*Update: From the NYT:

Bowing under intense pressure from members of their own party to end the politically damaging impasse over a payroll tax holiday, House Republican leaders agreed Thursday to accept a temporary extension of the tax cut, beating a hasty retreat from a showdown that Republicans increasingly saw as a threat to their election opportunities next year. Under a deal reached between House and Senate leaders -- which Speaker John A. Boehner was presenting to the rank and file in an evening conference call -- House members would accept the two-month extension of a payroll tax holiday and unemployment benefits approved by the Senate last Saturday, while the Senate would appoint members of a House-Senate conference committee to negotiate legislation to extend both benefits through 2012.