Dick Durbin Defends Daschle's Dalliance

Daschle's "Senior Moment" excuse will get him off the hook and let him keep his appointment. A Republican in a similar position would already have been tried, convicted, and burned at the media's stake.

As one might expect, a prominent Democrat has stepped forward to explain Senator Daschle's lapse of fiscal commitment. "If all you knew about Tom Daschle was that he used to be a senator, and he made a mistake and had to pay over $100,000 in back taxes, you have a right to be skeptical, even cynical. But if you know Tom Daschle, you know better," said Sen. Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate. "He lost an election ending his public career. His net worth was less than a million dollars at that point. And here he went out in the private sector, and now he's found himself having made a mistake and admitted to it. He took the steps necessary to start paying the taxes, make sure they're paid. Now, that's the right thing to do," he told the Washington Post. Well there you have it, folks. He was so overwhelmed by wealth he forgot to pay his taxes. And since Dick Durbin, who accused US servicemen and women at Guantanamo of being something out of Solzhenitsyn, says he is cool with it, we'll just have to accept two tax cheats in Obama's transparent cabinet. One of whom is now in charge of the same agency he defrauded, Treasury Secretary Geithner. Well,forgive us here at Artorius for being a tad cynical, and not a little skeptical. First, had the situation been reversed, the Republican tax cheat nominee would already be making protection deals with the Aryan Brotherhood. Democrats trying to brush off two tax evaders handling classified information, would, in an honest world, been a death knell for the party in the upcoming midterms. But these are Democrats, and with a slobbering, willing media, a couple of Hollywood Celebrities, and an Oliver Stone movie, they can turn tax evasion into a "heroic" and "courageous" struggle for Democrats, and stealing food out of the mouths of babies for Republicans. The Washington Post went on to report, "Senator Daschle is embarrassed and disappointed by these errors," Backus [Daschle Spokesman] said. "He apologized for his part in these errors and expressed his deep regret that the committee had to devote time to them." The White House acknowledged Friday that Daschle had "some tax issues," which, the administration said, have been resolved and should not bar his confirmation as secretary. A statement issued by the White House affirmed that Daschle "is the right person to lead the fight for health care reform." "Senator Daschle brought these issues to the Finance Committee's attention when he submitted his nomination forms and we are confident the committee is going to schedule a hearing for him very soon, and he will be confirmed," it said. It should be remembered that Obama was selling "Change", and the appointment of two admitted tax cheats to the inner circle seems to indicate more of the same. The statements from the White House seem to indicate that tax evasion shouldn't bar one from access to classified information or handling money that doesn't belong to him or her, and is more akin to farting in an elevator.