Tom Daschle is gone, withdrawn as a nominee for the position Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Good. He waited too long, received too many late expressions of support from the president on down to his former club members in the Senate. In fact, he should never have been selected. I could have told President Obama that.
For me, the worst of it was not so much the $140,000 in taxes that somehow never were paid, although the lowly amongst us are required to pay our taxes in a timely manner. It was the lobbying that really made me queasy. According to the Los Angeles Times:
Though not a registered lobbyist, the South Dakota Democrat over the last two years earned more than $2.1 million as a "special policy advisor" at Alston & Bird, a law firm with more than 50 lobbying clients in the healthcare industry.
According to financial disclosure forms filed with the Office of Government Ethics, Daschle also took in $153,200 in 2008 for giving speeches to healthcare companies and industry groups such as GE Healthcare, a leading manufacturer of medical devices.
That's far too great a conflict of interest to be acceptable. That, along with Daschle's sometimes weak performance as a leader in the Senate, was enough to give me great concern when Obama chose him. I couldn't see Daschle as tough enough to lead the fight to pass a bill providing health care for everyone.
I'm not running with the folks who are in a panic two weeks into the Obama administration, nor am I with those who already call his administration a failure, however it was a stumble by Obama that could easily have been avoided. He said, "I screwed up." All right then, lets move on.
I do wonder why President Obama is not making his case for the stimulus bill with the sort of passion that we saw him make his case for being president. The Republicans are speaking out, and the press covers their opposition quite well. He shouldn't forget that he owns the bully pulpit.
Well thought out, well written. There is a very sad recent (past 40 years) history of former members of Congress leaving to accept lucrative jobs in the lobbying industry. Mimi's former Congressman is a prime example of this.
ReplyDeleteSeems their $100K+ annual pay isn't enough and many come to feel they "must take time, while they can, to begin to think about their families." This paraphrased sentiment from Louisiana Senator John Breaux when he gave up his seat a few years ago.
John Breaux had even greater stature than Daschle in that he had wide bipartisan respect. He's not on Obama's short list for HHS secretary largely because he left Congress SPECIFICALLY TO BECOME A LOBBYIST.
Thanks for letting me vent so long.
The Toad.
Crapaud, no problem. The Congress critters didn't write the terrible Medicare Part D drug bill. Former Congressman Billy Tauzin and his co-horts in Pharma, the drug industry's lobbying group, wrote the bill.
ReplyDeletePoor critters. They need their turn to make really big money.
The President has an editorial in the Washington Post today supporting the stimulus bill and pointing out that obstruction is not a good idea. I only wish more Dems were out there fighting for it and swatting down silliness.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that he knows he screwed up and even said it is, I think, a very good sign. At least he's living in the land of realty.
ReplyDeleteI think you are right about the bully pulpit.
Paul, thanks for calling the editorial to our attention. Here's the link.
ReplyDeleteThat's more like it. I may write more about it. We will need to goad the Dems in Congress and remind them that, while Obama is popular, the Congress is not, and, if they're smart, they'll get on board with enthusiasm and get his bills through.
Lindy, what a new thing! The president takes responsibility! We haven't seen that for a good many years. That is a good sign.
Thanks Grandmere -- too bad Obama does not have you by his side to get his priorities in line with his alleged beliefs. I could not believe that lingered on for days.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't too upset Daschle withdrew, either; and many thought his problem was less the taxes than with making $5 million since he left the Senate.
ReplyDeleteBut I don't agree that Obama is at fault for the failure of the conversation to go his way. 5 interviews yesterday, an op-ed today. If he did any more, we'd complain he wasn't doing his "real" job. And relying on Obama alone is too much lifting for one person. Where are Reid, Pelosi, Schumer, Durban, Leahy, etc., etc., etc.? Their silence is deafening.
I'm also hearing lots of "progressives" who have problems with this huge stimulus bill. I can't decide who's nit-picking, and who has legitimate concerns, now. Maybe this is just how the process gets done.
We're all watching the sausage get made, and it's making us queasy. Sure hope it's tasty sausage anyway....
Rmj, some folks say the stimulus is not big enough.
ReplyDeleteI didn't see all of the interviews, but what I saw was sort of soporific, but for the startling surprise of a president saying, "I screwed up", as I've already said, a good thing, surely. Where is the passionate man that we saw on the campaign trail? If he thinks that he must not let that passion show now that he's president, then he's very wrong. FDR talked and walked us through the depression and WWII. Reagan talked and walked us through the disastrous policies that started the ball rolling to land us where we are today. They were often on stage and always in character. Obama can do it, and he should.
JFK did it too, but he didn't have time to accomplish much of what he wanted to do.
No fan of Daschle here.
ReplyDeleteThe Dems are always way too nice.
The Dems are always way too nice.
ReplyDeleteCL, exactly. And you'd think the Dems in Congress could manage to stand with their president when they're in the same party and in charge of the fecking place, especially in a time of crisis.
JFK did it too, but he didn't have time to accomplish much of what he wanted to do.
ReplyDeleteWell, I remember the Bay of Pigs as well as the inspiration to go to the moon. And, as you say, JFK didn't have enough time.
Obama's only had 14 (or is it 16 by now?) days. FDR got a lot done in 100 days, then ran into trouble that didn't stop, even with WWII (the GOP roundly criticized his handling of that war, too). And he was certainly handed his head on his "court packing" scheme. Still, he played hardball and taught the Court a thing or two about interfering with the political process. I wouldn't be averse to Obama doing that, if need be.
Which is only to say: it's always hard to assess in the middle. Is Obama failing, or succeeding?
Depends on the outcome, don't it? And we're just not there yet.
RMJ, we are not there yet, and I went off topic of Tom Daschle to how Obama conducts himself, which muddied the waters of the post. I'm not passing judgment on Obama's presidency yet. I think it was a really stupid idea to nominate Daschle, really, really stupid.
ReplyDeleteI know more than I want to know about what my former senator and representative are up to in DC, and it's not pretty. I'm not talking illegalities. What they do is, no doubt, perfectly legal. It's the old revolving door business as usual, and it makes me sick and somewhat despairing of real change. I operate out of suspicious mode. The politicians will need to prove themselves to me by doing the right thing.
Still, I'm greatly relieved that Bush is gone and that McCain is not our president.
I have been pondering all this all day - I just don't think the big guys really understand the problem we are facing. I think I'll blog on it tonight.
ReplyDeleteI think Obama understands. I hope that he doesn't forget his understanding.
ReplyDeleteGood to see Obama getting his Mojo back today. "We're not sticking w/ the SAME IDEAS which got us into this mess": preach it, O!
ReplyDeleteJCF, yes. Obama was in his bully pulpit yesterday, and it was a grand sight to see.
ReplyDelete