The Debt Ceiling and the 2012 Presidential Playing Field

The deficit reduction deal isn't over yet and it might play a role in next year's presidential campaign. Tea-Party favorite Michele Bachmann opposed any debt ceiling increase; moderate Jon Huntsman said one was needed. Other Republican presidential contenders had little to say while the debate was on, but now that it's over, Mitt Romney calls it a bad deal. Rick Perry, who's not yet announced, is still silent. What does that tell us about how the Republican nomination campaign is shaping up? Did the President give up so much he looks like a weak leader?