Yet another Obama Cabinet pick, Tom Daschle, in hot water for not paying his Taxes

I read the following article this morning and I was just simply stunned. I tried to view this Daschle tax evasion through the eyes of Obama. To be blunt, my rose colored glasses weren't powerful enough to see the light. Obama is once again staunchly supporting a candidate who didn't pay his taxes until he got caught. Oops! that darn accountant of mine... How he can defend Daschle's actions is clearly beyond me.

Are there no other candidates who are better suited for this position? In addition to tax evasion, Daschle faces a huge conflict of interest in my opinion.

The financial disclosure form Daschle filed about a week ago also shows that he made more than $200,000 in the past two years speaking to members of the industry that President Obama wants him to reform.

The speaking fees were just a portion of the more than $5.2 million the former South Dakota senator earned over the past two years as he advised health insurers and hospitals and worked in other industries such as energy and telecommunications, according to a financial statement filed with the Office of Government Ethics.

Among the health care interest groups paying Daschle for speeches were America's Health Insurance Plans, $40,000 for two speeches; CSL Behring, $30,000; the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, $16,000; and the Principal Life Insurance Co., $15,000.

Obama has said that no one in his administration who has lobbied on a set of issues within the past two years can deal with the same subject matter. The president has already approved a few exceptions. Daschle is not a registered lobbyist but he worked at a lobbying firm.

Daschle said in a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services ethics office that if he's confirmed by the Senate, he will resign as a senior policy adviser at the Washington law firm of Alston & Bird LLP. He reported earnings of more than $2 million from that firm during the past two years.

Daschle also earned more than $2 million in consulting fees from InterMedia Advisors LLC of New York, an investment firm specializing in buyouts and industry consolidation. He said he also intends to resign from that firm upon his confirmation.

Daschle is career DC and is a career politician. However, he will get confirmed because his hands are in so many pockets.

We can clearly do better than this. Can't we?? Again, Obama fails to change anything.

www.foxnews.com...

reply to post by sos37





If respect needs to be earned (which I agree with wholeheartedly) then shouldn't that also apply to disrespect?

Your avatar demonstrates a contradiction; a hypocrisy on your part.
There is no reason to respect or disrespect the current President as he has yet to earn either and your 'demonizing' his character seems to be born of a partisan impression that hasn't been substantiated.

And before you start going on the predicted tangent that there are a few contentious opinions held by Obama and even perhaps a few contentious policies in his first few days, consider that every Administration has had issues and scandals.

Guess the earning bit should only apply to the opposing party.

Excuse me for the slight detour Off Topic and I urge that the thread return to its' regularly scheduled discussion, "Yet another Obama Cabinet pick, Tom Daschle, in hot water for not paying his Taxes."

Thank you.

“Make no mistake, tax cheaters cheat us all, and the IRS should enforce our laws to the letter. ” Sen. Tom Daschle, Congressional Record, May 7, 1998, p. S4507

Ole Toms just another tax cheat.

Another do as I say , not as I do, should be Obamas new catch phrase. This administrations a joke already.

Originally posted by MemoryShock
reply to post by sos37

 

If respect needs to be earned (which I agree with wholeheartedly) then shouldn't that also apply to disrespect?

Your avatar demonstrates a contradiction; a hypocrisy on your part.
There is no reason to respect or disrespect the current President as he has yet to earn either and your 'demonizing' his character seems to be born of a partisan impression that hasn't been substantiated.

And before you start going on the predicted tangent that there are a few contentious opinions held by Obama and even perhaps a few contentious policies in his first few days, consider that every Administration has had issues and scandals.

Guess the earning bit should only apply to the opposing party.

Excuse me for the slight detour Off Topic and I urge that the thread return to its' regularly scheduled discussion, "Yet another Obama Cabinet pick, Tom Daschle, in hot water for not paying his Taxes."

Thank you.

Do you even understand the avatar? Half angelic, half devilish? I created it myself and is a statement that I believe that he still has a chance to go either way. Avatars a representation of each poster and this one represents, to me, how Obama stands yet to be viewed. I'd like to know how you see a contradiction in that pic. Perhaps it contradicts your own personal political view and you are incensed by it, which is what prompted you to bring it up in the first place?

However I completely disagree with your statement that he has not earned respect or disrespect. He has stood behind two proven tax cheats, aka criminals and one has become a part of his cabinet, but not JUST a member of his cabinet, a member that controls the IRS! You speak of hypocracy - are you really so blind as not to be able to acknowledge that glaring fact??? And during the election when we "our party" accused Obama of his ties with Tony Rezko, people on ATS repeatedly said "Where's the proof? Show us the proof!" Well now you have proof that he's backing two criminals and you have the gaul to say that he's earned NO disrespect?

I guess I should feel flattered that you're taking time out of your busy little day to respond directly to little old me. Your post is actually a nice demonstration of how a moderator can abuse their power on a whim to go completely off the subject to engage a member of ATS and yet incur no penalty of any kind. But yet when a member does it you stand ready to deduct points and erase their post. That, sir, is also hypocracy.

[edit on 2-2-2009 by sos37]

[edit on 2-2-2009 by sos37]

Daschle withdraws as HHS nominee.

All over CNN as I type.

I think I almost respect him a little.

Oh wait, scratch that...it was just gas.



Now if we can just get the rest of the politicians to follow his lead...

reply to post by lernmore


To tell you the truth this one just got me by surprise, Tom Daschle is actually well loved by his state supporters.

But avoiding taxes? I tell you nothing coming from our nations corrupted system of government should be a surprise to anyone anymore.

Here we have a government that support a private entity to over see the tax revenue of the hard working citizens in this nation, to prosecute those that are "tax evaders" penalized those that can not even made enough to feed themselves in an economy that is crisis, but then you have the beloved elite getting away with the same type of crime that they want to punish Americans with.

No wonder our nation is going down the hill, and still we just seat here in our homes and with our computers and just post how outraged we are.

But actually no doing anything about it.

Like my husband said when I told him about this, "What you want me to do that is the way things are".

Bend over hard working Americans, please!!!


[edit on 3-2-2009 by marg6043]

Originally posted by Texcin
“Make no mistake, tax cheaters cheat us all, and the IRS should enforce our laws to the letter. ” Sen. Tom Daschle, Congressional Record, May 7, 1998, p. S4507

Ole Toms just another tax cheat.

Another do as I say , not as I do, should be Obamas new catch phrase. This administrations a joke already.

So glad you posted that. Was getting ready to do it myself if no one else did.

Verifies my earlier post on elitism and hypocrisy by these (obama) people.

reply to post by centurion1211





Daschle withdrew from the nomination.

I am sure it wasn't conscience, there is more that would have come out.
I think it was a wise move on his part...might have saved jail time.

also posted elsewhere.



I just heard a skit on morning radio where the referred to obama as "H & R Barack".

I don't care who you are, now that's funny!

reply to post by marg6043

No wonder our nation is going down the hill, and still we just seat here in our homes and with our computers and just post how outraged we are.

Marg, I disagree with you. It was BECAUSE people like us made an uproar, and agitated enough to FORCE his withdrawal.
Never underestimate the power of the pen.