President Obama is having a rough start to his reign as the Crown Prince of Change. His choice to supervise the Treasury, Tim Geithner, didn’t pay his taxes, but was somehow approved to head the IRS. There’s some nice Washington logic for you.
However, Senator Tom Daschle, who has a storied 30 year history in Washington, dropped out of contention for head of Health and Human Services because he didn’t pay back taxes on use of a limo. Those taxes amount to over $130,000.
It was the intense scrutiny that finally forced Daschle to withdraw his nomination to the cabinet level post yesterday.
Another Obama appointee, Nancy Killefer, nominated for chief performance officer, had to back out of the job because she didn’t pay taxes on an employee.
And don’t forget about Bill Richardson. The New Mexico governor had to withdraw his nomination to Secretary of Commerce because he is being investigated for “a state contract awarded to his political donors.”
Maybe the Obama administration knew about all these issues and expected to be able to push over a weak Republican opposition.
Maybe they found out about these things during the vetting process and expected the lapdog media to help explain them away.
Or maybe they aren’t doing their jobs vetting the candidates before nominating them.
Which is worse?
Related posts:
- Daschle: To Pass Health Care Reform, Reconciliation “could be the only way”
- Obama Taps Tom Daschle for Health and Human Services Secretary, Daschle Worked for Health Care Lobbying Law Firm
- Another Obama Appointee, Another Democrat, More Tax Problems
- Did Daschle Resign Because He Was Caught in a Lie?
- Unbelievable: Obama Wins Country Music Entertainer of the Year
