Norquist's advocacy group is an influential voice for the Republican Party

Each of the four have said that they might be willing to raise taxes, in certain circumstances.

Peter King (R-N.Y.) said on NBC that he does not believe in “iron-clad positions,” Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said he would break the pledge if Democrats agreed to cuts in entitlement programs the New York Times reported, Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) was quoted by the Washington Post in saying “I care more about my country than I do about a 20-year-old pledge” and Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) told CBS that he too was “not obligated to the pledge.”

Norquist said he believes that if taxes rise on investors and businesses next year, that will cripple the Republican Party and could plunge the economy into another recession, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In response to the headlines, Norquist joked on CNN that “[Republicans have] some people discussing impure thoughts on national television,” but insisted that the vast majority of Republicans will not pay attention to their comments, the New York Times reported.

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