DASCHLE AND TAXES

Republicans Seize on Nominees’ Tax Problems NEW YORK TIMES -- Long after President Obama finds a new secretary of health and human services, presumably one who has paid his or her taxes, the damage from this week’s failed nomination may still plague him and his party. For years, the Democrats have struggled to shed the image of a high-tax party, and Mr. Obama made significant progress last year, according to opinion polls. But the succession of Obama nominees who failed to pay all of their taxes handed the Republicans a simple, powerful and possibly enduring argument in future tax debates. “It is easy for the other side to advocate for higher taxes,” Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia, the House Republican whip, told a party retreat last weekend, “because you know what? They don’t pay them.” click to read complete article

Daschle's, Geithner's, and Killefer's tax missteps come at time when 89 percent of Americans say it's unacceptable to fudge. CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR -- The tax woes of three of President Obama’s top-level appointees come at a touchy time. Amid deep economic troubles and taxpayer-funded bailouts and stimulus packages, many Americans are supersensitive to double standards between political and business elites and “the rest of us.” Some are angry because a different set of rules seemed to be in play on that basic civic responsibility: paying taxes. Despite the news headlines this week, the US has a remarkable culture of tax compliance, and that attitude seems to be strengthening. click to read complete article

Daschle withdrawal could alter calendar for health care issues FINANCIAL TIMES -- Tom Daschle’s withdrawal this week of his nomination for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) could significantly alter the calendar for health reform in the coming year, sources in Washington told Pharmawire. With significant health proposals still included in the economic stimulus package – including funding for health information technology and comparative effectiveness research – a push towards health care reform was expected in the first half of the year. The withdrawal could also delay the announcement of President Obama’s pick to head the Food and Drug Administration - though some sources said it remains possible the president will push ahead with that process given the magnitude of the agency’s current problems. click to read complete article