excuse me but........ fox........hen house .........right........wrong
HELLLOOOOOOO
Is Timothy Geithner so desperately needed to facilitate a restoration of the failing economy that Congress should give him a pass related to his recent federal tax indiscretions? Is there not anyone else with a clean record that would be equally qualified?
Some suggest the tax problems were just a small honest mistake and are not significant enough to impede his appointment. Here is what some consider insignificant:
The tax problems occurred in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005, and the total of all remedy payments amounted to approximately $48,268.
In 2006 the IRS discovered something wrong with his 2003 and 2004 tax returns and requested additional tax payments, waiving the related penalties. In these two years Mr. Geithner failed to pay taxes associated with working for the International Monetary Fund. The IMF provides written guidance for filing these taxes and makes employees sign that they received such guidance.
Actually, in 2001 and 2002 the same tax shortfalls existed but Mr. Geithner didn't amend these returns until 2008 when the Obama vetting process suggested he should. The vetting process also discovered that dependent Sleepaway camps in 2001, 2004, and 2005 were used to calculate dependent-care tax deductions. The IRS deems these activities not qualified for this deduction. More taxes were paid to remedy this problem.
Mr. Geithner also failed to realize that one of his immigrant household workers was working with expired papers. This also is an IRS issue that in the past has resulted in the withdrawal of candidates for public office.
You can decide if these tax issues are insignificant. The Treasury secretary is in charge of the IRS, so Mr. Geithner should now have a good understanding of these areas of the IRS Code. We all could use some economic recovery.
Maybe Mr. Geithner could be appointed with a probationary period.
G. David Lippert, Augusta
Comments
excuse me but........ fox........hen house .........right........wrong
HELLLOOOOOOO
For the average citizen, no! For an individual tagged to be the head of the Treasury (and IRS), hell yes! This guy should be sent packin' GGpap.
Sure we look for ways to deduct as much as we can because taxes are too high, but a lot of us don't break the laws in trying to do so.
Though I can't immediately recall precedent, appointing Geithner with a probatrionary period, as Mr. Lippert suggests, seems reasonable to me. Who would object and why? U.S. Treasury Secretary candidates are usually wealthy or hold power positions in the world of high finance (most often BOTH). In light of current economic conditions (lack of faith or trust), it would be difficult to locate a candidate with great merit who is not tainted. Few of these fellows become Sunday school teachers (though some of their colleagues often find Jesus, book deals and second careers in prison).
Finding enough honest Dems to fill all of the cabinet posts is just silly. Of course Geihtner is acceptable. He could have some reputable characteristics.
honest democratics can be tough to find; once you believe killing unborn humans is okay then everything is pretty much okay.
"just maybe, he didn't have the money to pay." ---- The IMF paid him to PAY THOSE EXPENSES! Yes, a seperate pay for exactly that purpose. He pocketed it instead. That's our new Treasury Secretary, not only cheated on taxes, committed fraud and is allowed to waltz right into office. Anyone else who doesn't pay even $100 in taxes, the State will try to sell their house from under them. >:(
How many of you voted for McCain? He, at one point owed back taxes on a home. Why didn't that disqualify HIM!!?? But I do agree, he should be a non-starter.
Q: What's the difference between a pigeon and a Wall Street investment banker?
A: The pigeon can still make a deposit on a BMW.
GaC, McCain is a senator from Arizona. How is he disqualified?
Wow...so it's "kinda expected" that people will avoid taxation? Gosh, maybe we should go back and pay reparations to all the people who have gone to jail, lost their homes, had their businesses confiscated, etc., because of doing something that was "kinda expected." It is not "kinda expected" for ME to do that; I pay a good deal in tax every year. Maybe I need a refund, plus interest, on all the money I've paid over the years that I could have kept, had I defrauded the government, as it was "kinda expected" that I would do...
That thought process (Lippert) is what's wrong with this country. No responsibilty for your actions. Just play stupid and your not guilty.
What I don't understand is that the interest and penalty were forgiven. We under-payed our taxes for 2007. We knew we would be charged interest and penalty. They just kept our stimulus check. How come his were forgiven? I think that sets a precedent for all taxpayers.
justus, if John McCain had been elected and it was his choice for the Sec of the Treasury who was guilty, you know your attitude would be different. You are so predictable.
Geithner is a part of the Demon-rat and Republi-con financial/political cabal. He is a liar and a scoundrel. But, so are most of those members of Congress who are passing judgment on him. It is a great disappointment that Obama would stand by this crook who, by the way, as president of the NY Fed Res Bank, has been a big contributor to the terrible economic/financial problems that have been created. As usual, patricathomas' contribution to this blog is reflective of her low self esteem and very limited intellectual abilities.
Knave, how do you figure that PT's comments are anything but a comment - admittedly somewhat acerbic - on the "democrats on parade" that we've seen. Let's see, so far we've had: a Cabinet nominee withdraw because he's about to be indicted...then we've had an AG nominee who recommended pardons for a tax cheat (hey...I see a pattern here...) who was also an illicit arms dealer who circumvented international sanctions on certain weapons deals; and the AG nominee also recommended pardons for FALN terrorists...you have a chief of staff who's most well known for sending dead fish to people via US mail...and then a SecTreas nominee who could not pay his taxes. Never mind the backdrop: Obama choosing a subsec of Defense who has been a lobbyist for Raytheon for a while now, thus violating Obama's own pledge not to hire lobbyists; Blago...who has named a replacement senator who looks to be honorable, except that he accepted the appt from Blago; the whole "Caroline deserves this seat b/c of her last name" mess, Jefferson "the gift who keeps on giving," Reid's land deals, Rangel's land deals / tax mess...it IS a little hard to find a Dem not being investigated or under indictment...
I mean, heck, the Republicans wouldn't re-elect the sleazy guy who was texting the pages, which is as it should be, but then the Democrat you replace him with, actually hires his adulterous mistress and pays her with taxpayer $. Ol' what's-his-name was just creepy, never even actually touched anyone, just was too weird to keep around, what with the emails and the pervy texts, but your guy actually DID put his hands and everything else on the object of his affections, and then paid her w/taxpayer funds, to boot! Kinda like Spitzer using the gov's limo to go see his call girls, and the NJ gov giving his boyfriend the State Homeland Security Directorship. Good lord...the liberals...it's not enough for them to be screwing around, they always have to find a way to give their booty calls a gov't job, or at least let them run gay prostitution rings from their apartments. And I don't know the last time we saw a Republican cheat on his taxes, but would that not be at least CONSISTENT from the party that is always trying to CUT taxes? But no, it's always the Dems, always the "raise taxes on the rich" party that is caught doing everything POSSIBLE, legal or not, to avoid taxation. Weird...
knave, I understood your comment until you got to the last sentence.
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