Posted on 02/04/2009 1:28:42 PM PST by Nachum
There are multiple lessons to be gleaned by President Barack Obama from the withdrawal Tuesday of former Sen. Tom Daschle as the White House nominee for secretary of the Health and Human Services Department. Here are four: - What usually works in Chicago to quell ethics controversies doesn’t wash in the nation’s capital. You should think twice about advice you get in the future from your advisers, who thought your November aura was still sufficiently bright enough to get Daschle confirmed. They thought Daschle could just say he’s sorry he forgot to pay $128,000 in taxes owed for his use of a limo and personal chauffeur provided by a big-bucks Democratic donor and media baron, then waltz to the White House to fill the dual roles of your health reform czar and HHS head. This isn’t Chicago.
- Having made strong public defenses of two of your three major nominees with tax problems, you have become a defender of Washington’s business-as-usual culture and given up the opportunity to portray yourself as the man who was going to bring change to the Potomac. It was a huge mistake to condone conduct by your Treasury and HHS secretary nominees that would have ruined the reputation of most people. Most of us would have our wages garnished, our bank accounts emptied and liens filed on our homes by the Internal Revenue Service.
- The bigger and more pervasive government becomes, the more difficult it is to find qualified, talented people to serve in high positions who don’t have multiple conflicts of interest.
Washington is overrun with former senators, representatives, executive-branch appointees, career civil servants and congressional staffers who are getting rich peddling influence. Daschle was notable, but far from unique, in having used his “political savvy and influence” to earn more than $5 million in a mere four years, as noted by The New York Times.
The solution is less government — not ever-more-complicated ethics regulations — so that fewer influence seekers look to former Washington big shots such as Daschle.
- The federal tax code must be shorn of its bewildering complications, exemptions, deductions and credits so that every taxpayer can pay either with a flat tax return the size of a postcard or a reformed version of the present system. Surely, if the tax code is too confusing for the Treasury secretary and former Senate majority leader — to say nothing of House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, who also has unpaid tax problems — it is past time to get out the chain saw.
Nachum, are you gonna keep adding stuff weekly? If you are I want to be on your PING list. This is great!!
It's like forcing a toddler to be potty trained. Takes more time for some.
The federal tax code must be shorn of its bewildering complications, exemptions, deductions and credits so that every taxpayer can pay either with a flat tax return the size of a postcard or a reformed version of the present system.
Problem here is this would shrink the Government...we can’t have that...not on Bambi’s watch!
He governs like he bowls.
Excellent observation.
I believe it was Mark Steyn today who said that this is like a concert being announced for Carnegie Hall.
The announcements say that a maestro will play Beethoven's Emperor Concerto.
The hall fills.
Out bounces a 5 year old who walks to the grand piano and very poorly plays Chopsticks.
And looks around for applause. And leaves the stage.
It's ominous that after two weeks, he and Michelle left the White House and went to a grade school to read to the 2nd graders.
Why did the Messiah and his beloved leave the White House? Because they were tired of it.
Yikes!
Yep and Michelle said ,,after a little girl said she wanted to grow up and be first lady,,”well, it doesn’t pay much”
A woman, surrounded by servants in a mansion with a car, driver, airplane, helicopter, food served from two chefs, free to go anywhere in the world on our dime,,,a woman complaints “it doesn’t pay much”
Something is very wrong here.
You should be madder still at the RINOs who allowed this to happen by fielding a RINO, democrat lite, in the form of McCain. Open Primaries, pushing of McCain by the RNC, etc. Trashing of Sarah Palin when they should have been pushing her and loudly denouncing any media portrayal of her as an inexperienced idiot. If you are going to get mad, get mad at the RINOs, they are the ones who caused real conservatives to either stay home or vote for someone who betrays their principles!
It wasn't all RINO's in NH, it was crossovers and some very arcane voting rules there that allows people outside NH to register and vote all on the same day. But, more, it was the sheep that listened after NH when the press declared McCain the front-running candidate in the GOP and people then voted for him.
even more... it was too many people in the field who split the votes in those early states ten ways to Sunday.
But... all that aside, I cannot stand McCain, but he is still better than Obama... so the people who didn't like McCain and stayed home or voted for Bob Barr (Obama won NC and indiana with thanks to Bob Barr -- shades of Ross Perot and his affect on #41) are who I blame for this current mess... and, yes, #43 takes a bit of the blame, too... for being the worst communicator in modern history.
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