What was thought to be a done deal on Capitol Hill is actually not. At jeopardy is a two month extension of the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance, meaning millions of American may see those benefits expire. Our Washington Bureau reporter Erin Billups explains why.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Saturday morning, the Senate overwhelmingly passed a deal extending the payroll tax holiday and unemployment insurance. House Speaker Boehner said last week if Senate leaders reached an agreement, the House would pass it, no problem.

"I'm committed to bring the House back to deal with whatever the Senate does. There’s absolutely no interest on our part in trying to be strident about this," Boehner said.

Fast forward to Monday and there apparently is a problem. Rank and file members of Boehner’s conference vowed to vote down the measure.

Boehner said, "We oppose the Senate bill because doing a two month extension instead of a full year extension creates uncertainty for job creators."

Speaking off camera to reporters, House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer blamed Tea Party Republicans, calling this latest stalemate "the concluding convulsion of confrontation and obstruction."

House GOP freshmen, meanwhile, say it’s the Senate that’s abandoning the public.

"What they sent us over was an insult to the American people. It was an insult. The American people deserve more. They deserve certainty," said Representative Ann Marie Buerkle.

One GOP freshman says the issue at work here is old school politics versus new school politics.

"We're operating as a conference should. We have dialogue with our leadership. The leadership does not tell us what we should do. They rather seek our leadership and they listen," said Representative Tom Reed.

So they’re calling on the Senate to return and re-negotiate the bill, but the Senate has already gone on vacation for the holidays.

"If it does not pass in the House, it's hard to see how to get it resuscitated again," Senator Charles Schumer said.

And if a bill is not passed, many Americans will feel the pain.

"Here we are, the very end of December, facing the possibility 160 million Americans will have their taxes go up on January 1st," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said.

The White House supports a full-year extension, but is calling on the House to pass what has already been agreed upon in the Senate.