UPDATED Tom Daschle. On Video. 1998.

President Obama is not exactly batting 1.000 on his Cabinet nominees. As Mark Levin pointed out today (download audio here), Al Capone did not get a cabinet post for his tax "forgetfulness"; yet Geithner has already been confirmed to LEAD THE IRS--even though he himself sheltered taxable income and got caught doing it. Nice role model, Mr. President. Sort of analogous to nominating Timothy Leary as Drug Czar.

And so now we have the Daschle matter before the Seante, more tax evasion, which is particularly ironic considering this video of a Tom Daschle floor speech excoriating tax cheats surfaced today. Embarrassing to say the least. But considering that Daschle is also in the pocket of many health care special interests, putting him in charge of HHS is a huge conflict of interest. This is the guy who wants to push through single payer, which would be an unmitigated disaster.

But (when it comes to taxes) Americans do this kind of thing all the time--the point is that all of us want to hold onto as much of our earnings from the confiscatory government as possible. But Democrats don't seem to espouse that view (do as I say, not as I do...). For example there is the loudmouth Biden's infamous quote paying taxes being our "patriotic duty". Somehow when I write that big check every quarter, it isn't quite the same patriotic feeling as watching a B-2 flyover at the Rose Bowl. But what do I know...

In any case, Obama's nominees for Treasury and HHS hardly seem to be poster children for paying our "fair share". The message seems to be: Republicans should pay their taxes, but Democrats will be allowed to skate if they avoid paying theirs (ask Charley Rangel). Because, after all, they are so critical to our recovery.

Al Capone should been a Democrat politician.

The thing that is most hypocritical about the events are playing out in the Senate is that it is the weak-kneed Republicans who seem to be falling down on their job of Advise and Consent. Do not forget that over 40 Bush nominees to the Cabinet and Judiciary were filibustered by a Democrat minority--some were held up for over two years and never made it to the floor, even though virtually all of them would have been confirmed had the Dems not obstructed the nominations; yet the Senate Republicans, "led" by Mitch McConnell seem to be cowering away from showing the Democrats that this sort of thing works both ways.

For example, the Senate confirmed the reprehensible Holder today at Justice, despite his horrific track record as an Assistant AG under Janet Reno and his blatant disregard for the Second Amendment.

Taking the so-called "high ground" is one thing, but Republicans seem to have not groked in the last 8 years that their opponents see politics as bloodsport. If Republicans are not prepared to take principled stands to keep our country from becoming another UK, then we are putting people in office who are ill-equipped to fight on equal terms with the opposition. And that is a losing proposition.

From where I sit, the Republicans appear to be shaking in their collective boots about opposing any nominee (no matter how tainted) that the Obama Administration wants to conjure up. Hell there were Clinton AG nominees who were nixed just because they had undocumented housekeepers. The Daschle (and Holder and Geithner) track records of tax evasion and pardoning terrorists seem to be much more aggregious than a former Clinton nominee paying a woman to clean her house. Yet Republicans are for the most part cowering in the shadow of Our Lord and Savior Barack Obama, who 46% of the public voted against. Why??

If Republican Senators will not do the job we elected them to do--which is to fight for OUR principles--then we need to find Senators who will do so. So far I am as upset at Republican Senators as I am at the partisan Democrats--who after all are just doing what they have always done: put their party and Marxist ideology before the good of the country.

As Sun Tzu said, a decision to do nothing is still a decision. Ramesh Ponnuru seems to have sensed the rising discontent amongst Republicans about the Senate Leadership--it remains to be seen if Michael Steele can right this ship before it sinks altogether. So far the party of Lincoln seems to be more concerned with appeaseing the (already hostile) media, than to stand up for principle.

It is time for us to speak up; it truly is now or never. Call your Senators NOW. Tell them if they vote for Daschle, you will not support them. Period. We need all 40-41 Republican to hold serve here. But they won't do it if you don't push them. Today only 21 voted against Holder. That is shameful. We have to do better to bring more pressure to bear, and that is up to you.

UPDATE: Cold Fury says "Serf's Up!":

Maguire says that the WSJ is scathing in its editorial response to dirtball Daschle’s near-criminally offensive excuse-making for his outright criminal tax evasion - -and he’s right. But he doesn’t exactly pull any punches himself:

I am sooo looking forward to April 15 (that’s tax-filing day for the Democrats out there). Instead of vexing myself with hours of tedious record-review I’ll just put down any numbers that pop into my head, secure in the knowledge that a simple apology will suffice if I’m ever questioned. Well, first I have to change my party registration to “D” and mail that check to Obama…

Can you say “incipient tax revolt?” I knew you could.

Update! From another equally scathing post: “Don’t ask, don’t tell on taxes - that’s change we can believe in.” Whoa, that’s good Squishy.

UPDATE: Rich Lowry may have summed it up best:

Geithner’s nomination was deemed “too big to fail.” If Daschle gets the same treatment, it will mean whoever Obama wants for a given position is ipso facto too important to be expected to abide by the tax laws. Daschle, the former Senate majority leader, has no management experience to prepare him for running a 60,000-person department and has no greater expertise in health care—he’s co-authored a book on the subject—than any number of other possible nominees.

Daschle is exceptional only insofar as he’s such a perfect representation of the Beltway culture of easy enrichment for former officeholders.

Bingo.