Not treasuring leadership by example

When I was a kid, saying "I forgot" usually got me in heaps of trouble with my dad. Today, the same line about paying your taxes apparently qualifies you to be Secretary of the Treasury:

New York Federal Reserve Bank President Timothy Geithner won confirmation Monday as President Barack Obama's treasury secretary despite personal tax lapses that turned more than a third of the Senate against him.

Referring to Geithner's tax problems, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Geithner had made amends - he has paid the taxes and penalties - and possessed the talent needed to steer the nation out of the crisis. ((oh, those indispensable public servants! How we must be tolerant of their foibles! -- Jemison))

Three Democrats and one independent voted against Geithner's confirmation, including Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., the longest-serving senator in history.

"Had he not been nominated for treasury secretary, it's doubtful that he would have ever paid these taxes," Byrd said in a statement.

I rarely agree with Byrd, but this is one of those times. What does it say when our government confirms as the chief financial officer--who oversees the hated IRS--a man who didn't even pay his own taxes correctly in several different years? It says "contempt of the average American" to me.

Only one way would I respect this choice: if upon taking office he immediately abolished the IRS and pushed Congress to repeal the income tax, saying if it was too hard for him to get right, it's probably a problem for the rest of the country, too.

Yeah, I'm not holding my breath...