It’s just a “mistake”

Okay, I try to keep out of politics as much as possible, but I just can’t help myself. For all of Obama’s talk about “change,” whatever that means, so far I haven’t seen anything new.  His proposed “stimulus” package is, from what I’ve heard, only about 1/5 actual stimulus, and the rest is just the typical pork-barrel spending.

Now, we see just how committed to integrity Obama is. First, we have his pick for Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner, who was discovered to have not paid $34K in self-employment tax. He blames Turbo-Tax for not telling him he should report those earnings.  Anybody see the irony here?  A Treasury Secretary who doesn’t know enough to report a few hundred thousand of self-employment income?  If he’s put in charge of the Treasury, do we all get to rely on the Turbo-Tax defense?

If that wasn’t enough, now we have poor old Tom Daschle, who apparently just forgot to pay over $120,000 in taxes.  But, apparently it’s okay, because he sent a letter of apology.  Tom didn’t use the Turbo-Tax defense… for Tom, it was just a “mistake.” So, will this be precedent-setting for the IRS?  This sounds an awful lot like an old Steve Martin routine, where he suggests using the excuse, “I forgot:”

You.. can be a millionaire.. and never pay taxes! You can be a millionaire.. and never pay taxes! You say.. “Steve.. how can I be a millionaire.. and never pay taxes?” First.. get a million dollars. Now.. you say, “Steve.. what do I say to the tax man when he comes to my door and says, ‘You.. have never paid taxes’?” Two simple words. Two simple words in the English language: “I forgot!” How many times do we let ourselves get into terrible situations because we don’t say “I forgot”? Let’s say you’re on trial for armed robbery. You say to the judge, “I forgot armed robbery was illegal.” Let’s suppose he says back to you, “You have committed a foul crime. you have stolen hundreds and thousands of dollars from people at random, and you say, ‘I forgot’?” Two simple words: Excuuuuuse me!!“

Obama is on record as saying he “absolutely” stands by Daschle.  He, too, must accept the “I forgot” defense, which makes it even better. How can the IRS come after you or me for not paying taxes if it’s okay with the whole Executive Branch?

I’m trying to figure out, based on all this, what Obama really meant by “change.”  It could mean a couple of things. One, it could mean – as it seems – that the tax code is “more of a guideline than an actual rule.”  Considering Obama’s post-modern constituency, this could be the case, and it probably won’t stop there; I can see them looking at the whole Constitution as “more of a guideline.”   Obama also could have meant that in light of his stimulus package, which could exceed $1 Trillion, $120,000 is just “chump change.”

Or, it could be simply that he lied. It could be that he’s no different than any other politician, with little or no scuples, making empty promises and plans to get away with whatever he can. I wonder, will he look the other way at the forgetfulness of Republicans, or just his fellow Dems?  He’s only in his 2nd week as President- what he does now will set the stage for the next 4 years.  It he a man of integrity, or not? Only time will tell … but, he should know that there are many of us who are not as forgetful as his cabinet picks.

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