Bad Day
President Obama originally a day of PR planned to drum up support for the stimulus package. That abruptly changed this afternoon when Senator Tom Daschle announced, weepy-eyed, that he was withdrawing his name to be Obama’s health chief. Daschle was an early supporter of Obama’s, even when Hillary Clinton was still the favorite for the Democratic nomination, lobbying many Democrats in Congress on Obama’s behalf from very early on.
When Daschle’s name was first put into play, every one believed his confirmation would be as clean and quick as they come. He’s a veteran Senator who’s survived more than a few national elections, and most in Congress have a great deal of respect for him. But unbelievably, like Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Daschle failed to live up to the most fundamental obligation of a U.S. citizen–paying taxes.
And if Geithner and Daschle were not enough, Nancy Killefer, who was in consideration to be the President’s Chief Performance Officer, has also withdrawn over a similar tax issue.
The number of Obama appointees that have evaded paying taxes is as astonishing as it is unprecedented. Obviously, it raises serious issues with the vetting process. So all the chickens are coming home to roost on Barack Obama’s lap. The President is facing an onslaught of criticism, much of it from the Right, but there’s plenty coming from the Left as well. In an interview with Brian Williams today, Obama attempted to assuage the mob by admitting that he “screwed up.” Honest and little touching, Mr. President, but not likely to quiet many critics.
Daschle had issues over and above keeping his taxes in order. Having resigned from the Senate in 2005, Daschle was all too willing to dive into corporate America and bask in its cash. As the New York Times stated in the editorial that prompted Daschle to withdraw:
Mr. Daschle’s financial ties to major players in the health care industry may prove to be even more troublesome as health reform efforts proceed. Like many former power players in Washington, Mr. Daschle cashed in on his political savvy and influence to earn $5 million in recent years, including more than $2 million from Alston & Bird, a law and lobbying firm; more than $2 million from the private equity firm, InterMedia Advisors, which provided the car and driver; and hundreds of thousands of dollars for speeches to interest groups, including those representing health insurance plans, medical equipment distributors and pharmacy boards.
Although Mr. Daschle was not a registered lobbyist, he offered policy advice to the UnitedHealth Group, a huge insurance conglomerate. He was also a trustee of the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, on whose behalf he voiced opposition to a federal loan for a freight rail line near the clinic’s headquarters in Rochester, Minn. The loan was subsequently denied by the Federal Railroad Administration.
These developments come amidst increasing scrutiny of President Obama’s inconsistent application of his new ethics rules limiting the extent to which lobbyists can work in the administration. Days after issuing the ethics rules, Obama promptly waived them in connection with at least three high profile appointments–William Lynn, a former Raytheon lobbyist, whom Obama nominated as deputy defense secretary; Mark Patterson, who lobbied for Goldman Sachs and is now chief of staff to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner; and, least significant, William Corr, who lobbied for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, whom Obama has selected as deputy health and human services secretary.
Obama’s appointment of Judd Gregg as Commerce Secretary is yet another interesting development of the last few days. A former Congressman, Governor and now Senator from New Hampshire, Gregg is a flaming conservative who apparently opposes not only the stimulus package, but also social security and medicare. Reportedly, he also voted to abolish the selfsame commerce department he is now heading. Progressives are hyperventilating about all this, which I think is unwarranted.
Within the administration, the buck starts and stops with President Obama. Obama is Judd’s boss. Therefore, there is little risk of Judd going off the reservation because his job hangs in the balance. The question is, Do we want an executive branch that represents a subsection of Congress, or one that reflects Congress as a whole? Judd could arguably be helpful in building bipartisan coalitions and, to be sure, contributes to the “team of rivals” Obama is trying to put together. I see no compelling reason to second-guess the judgment of our President on these procedural matters. At least not yet.
Remember Joseph P. Kennedy, FDR’s selection as the first chairman of the SEC? Kennedy had been a speculator in the 1920s and was widely known to have sailed a little too close to the wind, trading on inside information and otherwise exploiting the informational inadequacies that were present at that time. He was basically a robber baron. In an oft-quoted story, when FDR was asked why he appointed a stock speculator as chairman of the SEC, Roosevelt said, “Takes a thief to catch a thief.”
Still, under Roosevelt’s leadership, Kennedy proved to be a surprisingly effective chairman, ushering in substantial reform and regaining the trust and confidence of the investing public.
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