Congressional Republicans find themselves on a desert island with no company and 2014 elections looming

From the latest Washington Post/ABC poll:

And this:

But hard truth at this hour, according to Greg Sargent writing in the Post, is that we are pretty close to the "cliff."

A lot of noise has been kicked up by all the finger-pointing, so let me summarize the situation in two sentences:

1) Democrats are willing to agree to hundreds of billions of dollars in Medicare cuts.

2) Republicans are not willing to agree to one penny in higher tax rates from the wealthy. ...Greg Sargent, WaPo

The two sides are unequal in what they're willing to concede.  And the Dems may have to concede more... but...

The GOP has not given an inch when it comes to the core question of whether tax rates on the rich will go up. Yes, Republicans have agreed to new revenues from the wealthy via closing loopholes and deductions. But many experts believe the math simply can’t be made to work without a rise in high end rates, and this was perhaps the central issue in the election that Obama just won decisively. The contrast is simple: Dems have given ground on the need for Medicare cuts — even if you think they haven’t given enough ground, they have given some ground. But Republicans have not given any ground on the central concession they will have to make for a deal to be possible.

That still remains the main obstacle here, and any account that doesn’t make that crystal clear is simply misleading people. That’s why Politico reports that the writing is on the wall — Republicans will end up agreeing to higher rates on the rich.... Greg Sargent, WaPo

One way of looking at it would be that either way the Republicans lose.  Their intransigence lost them seats in both houses of Congress in 2012 as well as the presidency.  What can they hope for in 2014 if they continue to take a hard line?  With the polls showing the majority are against their protection of the most wealthy and their willingness to burden the middle class?