Several top Republicans abruptly abandoned Norquist this week, declaring themselves unbeholden to his pledge, which forbids signers from raising any type of revenue.

But privately, several Republican activists told Business Insider that they are neither surprised nor upset by Norquist's fall from grace, underscoring a growing schism between the ATR chief and his fellow conservatives.

"For those of us in the trenches, this is old news," a top Republican Senate aide told Business Insider. "I think his power has been vastly overstated."