Two Cabinet Appointments, One Double Standard

The hypocrisy of many liberal Democrats and their Amen Chorus in the media is never more apparent than when a new administration is staffing up.

Eight years ago, President Bush nominated Linda Chavez for Secretary of Labor. She would have been the first Hispanic woman to serve in a President's cabinet. She had previously worked for the American Federation of Teachers and was a close associate of that union's iconic leader, Albert Shanker. However, she had subsequently served in the administrations of Presidents Reagan and George H. W. Bush, and her appointment as Labor Secretary in 2001 was bitterly opposed by big labor.

A national scandal erupted when, on the speculation of a neighbor, it was suggested that Chavez had illegally employed Marta Mercado, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala, and had failed to pay employer withholding taxes. Because of a storm of Congressional opposition, Chavez eventually withdrew her nomination. It was later established by an FBI investigation that Chavez was providing safe-haven for a victim of domestic abuse, had given her money, but had never employed the woman. Mercado and others familiar with the situation all confirmed that Chavez had acted as a good Samaritan.

Now we have in Treasury Secretary-designate Timothy Geithner, a man who did not pay self-employment taxes for several years, even though he had acknowledged his obligation to do so. He also failed to maintain the immigration status of a housekeeper who had worked for him. Although he earned $398,200 in 2007, he only settled a $34,000 debt to the IRS last November when it became clear that he was under consideration to be the nation's chief financial officer.

What is the response of Congressional leaders? Are they waiting to see how he explains the problem in Senate confirmation hearings scheduled for January 21? Hardly.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus has already announced that Geithner "will clearly be confirmed" by the Senate. No need to wait for any explanations, background investigations, or committee hearings; the matter has already been decided.

Do you think that when the nation has a scofflaw Treasury Secretary, the IRS will let you owe $34,000 over the course of years? This isn't change one can believe in; it's just the same old double standard.