“high enough so lawmakers likely won’t have to go through this exercise again until 2013.”

They hope. it is based on the current economy and if it tanks the new scheduled crisis will be re-scheduled for a closer date.
There is a major misunderstanding going on here.
Tea Party is an interest group, Not a political party.
Political parties have agendas and function by trading items from their agenda. The (D)’s give the (R)’s something they want in return for something the (D)’s want. They then call it compromise and claim to be making ‘progress’
Interest groups that play that game end up like a puppy that played bumper tag on the expressway. Take the Anit-war groups( someplace far away, please). They tried compromise and now they are a whinney bunch of fools ignored by everyone.
So long as the Tea Party remains focused on reducing government spending they cannot lose.
Government default? GOOD, the feds can’t spend money nobody will lend them. Bond rating downgraded? GOOD. See above about if it’s harder to get money, there will be less borrowed. Government collapses? Good. If there is no government they can’t spend money. This is a win-win for most of Americans. Percenters ( anybody that derives income from a percentage of another’s labor) will get screwed but they have been screwing everybody for ages it’s only fair that they get a turn over the barrel.
Was it Judges were Samson took down the Temple? The establishment needs to know that it’s over.
They either stop with the deficit spending or the Temple comes down. Since deficit spending will destroy everything eventually, Destroying it now allows the rebuilding to start sooner and puts the hurt on the Bathtards that did this.