Charles Krauthammer has mischief in his eyes, thank God, when he tells of his crush on Obama:
It's pleasant to fantasize that Obama will enact conservative policies when reality bites, but here's the truth: Obama is a piece of fluff. He's never been sternly tested, but when he's been gently tested he sides with convenient evil then lies about it, whether it's Reverend Wright, Professor Ayers or, most definingly, the Born Alive Infants Protection Act in Illinois.

There's little chance he'll have the guts to do the inconvenient right thing, but, oh my, he'll sure sound as tho he wants to. Don't watch his lips and don't watch his hips, watch what he does. He'll convene a Fiscal Responsibility Summit. He says:

his administration will begin confronting the issues of entitlement reform and long-term budget deficits soon after it jump-starts job growth and the stock market.

"What we have done is kicked this can down the road. We are now at the end of the road and are not in a position to kick it any further," he said. "We have to signal seriousness in this by making sure some of the hard decisions are made under my watch, not someone else's."

The first saying on the quotes page of the IRS website is:

Tax is what we pay for a civilized society.

... the nominee admitted that his failure to pay tens of thousands of dollars in federal taxes had been “careless” but “unintentional” ...

We were not impressed with Mr. Geithner’s excuses for his tax problems, but barring any new damaging disclosures, we heard nothing disqualifying. He is clearly an intelligent man and Mr. Obama is entitled to pick his own team.

1. Give us your money or we'll take it by force and you will get hurt. That is theft.

2. Give us your money, it's right to obey the law. That is citizenship.

Had Geithner a better record than accomplice in the present mess, it were still wrong to appoint an obvious, serial tax cheat to the job of tax chief. Maybe if he were pro-life that would disqualify him in the eyes of the New York Times as it seemed to disqualify otherwise unassailable appointments to The Supreme Court. It's not only the partisanship of the Times that grates, but also the stupidity. If I were a machiavellian President, I'd conserve colorable moral authority, especially in fiscal matters. Now noone need pay federal taxes because it's the right thing to do. You can't steal from a thief. How about a tax on hypocrisy?

The last quote on the IRS page is:

Income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf.

Full disclosure: In this society I might cheat at tax were I sure I'd not be punished, partly because I'd be richer, but also because the authority to take my money depends on votes from people who pay little or no tax but receive subsidies. Their votes are bought with my money. However I'm not auditioning for Treasury Secretary. In fact I overpay tax since the effort of tax avoidance is outweighed by the disturbance to the intellectual tranquillity on which my speculator's lifestyle depends.

When our Senate is on the verge of confirming a tax cheat and liar well meaning but "honest mistake" prone wiz to head the nation's treasury, can't one be forgiven for the honest mistake of believing God put an extra $175K in your bank account.

I can't say $175K is enough to warrant quiting my job and moving to Florida, but hey, prices are falling - after all Geithner's integrity is only worth $34K.

I can be a bore on this Geithner thing. It doesn't take a holistic view to condemn Geithner. There's no nuance required. It's black and white. You can't appoint a tax cheat as Tax Chief. One more time. You can't appoint a tax cheat as Tax Chief. It destroys consent and taints the whole Administration. It's less Geithner's character that interests me in this matter than Obama's. If he won't act on this elementary point, he lacks cunning as well as good policy. Maybe he's just Carter II. Conservatism's outstanding politicians, Romney and Palin,should team up now and start campaigning for and against Obama's good and bad policies. Why wait? History won't. 'What good policies?' you ask. Oh, I dunno. I just said that as tho Obama weren't the authentic fake that Spengler describes.

Give me an ounce of civet, good apothecary, to sweeten my imagination.

+ Charlie Rangel, tax cheat, nepotist, Head of House Ways and Means Committee.
+ Chris Dodd, received bribes from Countrywide, top beneficiary from Fannie and Freddie, Chairman Senate Banking Comittee.
+ Nancy Pelosi, pro partial birth abortion, pro gay marriage, Catholic, in line for President after Joe Biden, House Speaker.
+ Joe Biden, serial liar, Vice President.
+ Barack Obama, killed Born Alive Infants Protection Act, nice teeth, pleasant baritone, President.
+ Reid, Clinton, Holder....

It is not nor it cannot come to good.

All this kerfuffle about taxes! Geithner, Rangel, Killefer, Franken, Daschle....I'm losing track. Is there a pattern here? Limousine liberals who don't pay taxes even on their limos. I wouldn't be surprised if the Daschle nomination is withdrawn by the time I finish writing this post.....the gale of ridicule is shredding Obama's credibility with even a few of the credulous. This campaign ad is all over the internet and enough to finish him off:
But now there's a New York Times editorial against him and Nancy Killefer has withdrawn from her appointment as performance czarina because, uh, she didn't pay some tax.

The great Victor Davis Hanson derives a lesson:

This is all about as good an argument for a flat tax as one can imagine.

Flash: And lo! the deed is done. Daschle out. So how in tarnation can Geithner stay in charge of the IRS? How can Rangel run tax legislation? Answers on a postcard to: Office of Hope, Change and Expediency, West Wing.

Biden:

It’s time to be patriotic, Kate. Time to jump in. Time to be part of the deal. Time to help America get out of the rut.

I dunno... picking non-patriots so far have netted over $140,000 plus $946.69 in new found revenue for the treasury. But there is the down side, Obama's latest batch of tax cheats were keeping Tim Geithner's name wafting in the air far too long. Whatever flaws the President's next appointees will have, you can be sure tax challenged won't be one of them. True patriots.

Too bad, I hear the treasury can use the cash.

I can't blame Tom Daschle stepping aside for a true patriot. It is the right thing to do in light of his $100K+ tax "oversight", but he has deprived me getting another convoluted explanation from Senator Hatch justifying why he should be confirmed.

Here is part of Hatch's response to a note I sent him about Geithner:

As you, I do not condone, nor dismiss, Mr. Geithner's inability to file honest and fair tax returns and to pay the money he rightfully owes to the Federal Government. I also believe, however, in the principle of forgiveness, restitution and answering the demands of the law and once this process has taken place, I am loath to continually bring up people's sins, mistakes and failures only to publicly flog and humiliate them. These are principles I have been taught since I was a small boy and they are as true today as they were when I was young. Republican or Democrat, I have consistently stood up for those who have truly gone through the repentance process and now seek mercy.

I guess I missed that part about Geithner answering the demands of the law. You or I cheat, we get to pay back the tax, interest and a penalty. Anyone catch the penalty part of Geithner's restitution?

Sorry Senator, I wasn't asking for a public flogging (some time in the stocks though?). One can be forgiving and still make the call that a "reformed" tax cheat probably isn't a good idea to run the IRS. I'll have to watch Hatch when legislation is put forth allowing repentant pedophiles to teach elementary school.

For insights into the obliviousness of our political class to the rank and file's revulsion of tax cheats, I'm including my exchange with Senator Hatch below the fold, though I can sum it up as follows:

I know Geithner is a tax cheat, you unforgiving partisan, but he is bright one. Anyway, he's going to be the best you'll get because that patriot pool is shallow on the Demo side.

The Feds are fixing to fix UBS for enabling US citizens to hold offshore accounts out of sight of the IRS. They want names:

“At a time when millions of Americans are losing their jobs, their homes and their health care, it is appalling that more than 50,000 of the wealthiest among us have actively sought to evade their civic and legal duty to pay taxes,” John A. DiCicco, acting assistant attorney general in the Justice Department’s tax division, said in a statement.

Update: Emanuel.

Not one of mine, alas, but I do feel his pain; Jimmy Cayne, the former Bear Stearns CEO, on Geithner:

The audacity of that p—- in front of the American people announcing he was deciding whether or not a firm of this stature and this whatever was good enough to get a loan,” he said. “Like he was the determining factor, and it’s like a flea on his back, floating down underneath the Golden Gate Bridge, getting a h—-o-, saying, ‘Raise the bridge.’ This guy thinks he's got a big d—. He’s got nothing, except maybe a boyfriend. I’m not a good enemy. I’m a very bad enemy. But certain things really—that bothered me plenty. It’s just that for some clerk to make a decision based on what, your own personal feeling about whether or not they’re a good credit? Who the f— asked you? You’re not an elected officer. You’re a clerk. Believe me, you’re a clerk. I want to open up on this f—-r, that’s all I can tell you.