Tom Daschle's Nomination for HHS Hits Tax Obstacle

Tom Daschle, President Obama's nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services (pictured here wearing the glasses that are the only evidence that he has collected the souls of Sally Jessy Raphael and Jerry Springer), has become the latest in a string of Obama appointees to hit an embarrassing roadblock:

Tom Daschle, President Barack Obama's choice for secretary of Health and Human Services, paid about $140,000 in back taxes and interest after questions surfaced during the vetting of his nomination, according to documents being prepared by the Senate Finance Committee. (See full Senate Finance Committee statement.)

Mr. Daschle made the payments to cover a luxury car and driver provided to him by an investment firm where he was an adviser after leaving the U.S. Senate in 2005, but which he didn't report as income, people familiar with the report said. The payments also covered unreported consulting income and unwarranted charitable deductions. The tax period covered 2005 through 2007.

Daschle's excuse sounds exactly like something he could have cooked up with his accountant while they drank and did his taxes:

Mr. Daschle told committee staff that he had grown used to having a car and driver as Senate majority leader and didn't think to report the perquisite on his taxes, according to staff members.

"Yeah, dude, that'll totally work! (Burp!)"

It's like the time I told a judge how I'd been on vacation in Amsterdam for so long, I'd gotten used to blowing pot smoke in the cops' faces and demanding that they "fetch Doritos for all of my men!"

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner barely squeaked through, and Bill Richardson saw his nomination for Commerce Secretary scuttled by a pay-to-play investigation.

Like Geithner, Daschle has impeccable qualifications for the post, and any replacement would likely be inferior. With the country in such a mess, getting the best man for the job has so far outweighed concerns such as these. Maybe they should, but it's galling. For an administration that's telling the rich A-holes of the business world that they can't get away with stuff anymore, they employ too many of those same rich A-holes.

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