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Seuss said:
Another great pick by Obama.

http://us.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/03/02/obama.kirk.taxes/index.html:

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Former Dallas, Texas, Mayor Ron Kirk, who is President Obama's nominee to be the U.S. trade representative, owes nearly $10,000 in taxes. He's the fourth Obama pick that has come under fire for tax issues.

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What I find really annoying...

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Kirk has agreed to pay the $9,975 he owes from amended returns, according to the report.

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If any of us don't pay our taxes, even if they are "a few minor issues", we get hit hard with penalties such as fines and interest.  Why are all of these politicians getting off with simply paying what they owed?

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The committee said the taxes arise from Kirk's handling of speaking fees he donated to a scholarship fund that he set up at his alma mater, and for his deduction of the full cost of season tickets to the Dallas Mavericks professional basketball team.
 
Kirk also agreed to make changes in his accounting of charitable deductions, including reducing the claimed value of a donated television from $3,000 to $1,500.

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zappaisgod said:
I can't figure out if your inability to discern a difference is due to your inability to see the details or the sensory loss due to the overwhelming explosion of light the current particle/antiparticle annihilation is emitting.  What otherwordly perspective would one have to have to view the two parties as the same?  Somewhere from the Virgo Cluster, I'm sure.

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Virus_with_Shoes said:

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Yet another dashed hope.

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Oh boy. Poor Obama can't catch a break.

On the other hand, you'd be pretty hard pressed to find a politician from either party that doesn't have the stench of scandals and pandering to special interests on them. It seems to come with the territory these days.

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zappaisgod said:

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Capitalism vs Socialism vs Communism

[1] The differences between capitalism vs socialism vs communism may be summarized as follows:

Capitalism is an informal economic system in which property is largely privately owned, and in which profit provides incentive for capital investment and the employment of labor.

Socialism is a formal economic system in which society exerts considerable control over the nation's wealth and property in the pursuit of social justice.

Communism is a formal economic system in which property, particularly capital property (e.g. factories, machines, tools, etc.), is commonly owned and scarce resources are allocated through planning as opposed to price signals in a free market.

[2] The three economic systems have the following characteristics:

Capitalism Socialism Communism

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http://www.conservative-resources.com/capitalism-vs-socialism-vs-communism.html

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Kathleen Sebelius, named as U.S. health secretary by President Barack Obama, became his latest nominee to reveal income tax issues, saying on Tuesday she paid nearly $8,000 to settle errors over three years.

Sebelius, the governor of Kansas, must pass a confirmation process in Congress before she can lead Obama's overhaul of the $2.5 trillion U.S. healthcare sector to cut costs and provide coverage to an estimated 46 million uninsured Americans.

"Unintentional errors" involving charitable contributions, mortgage interest and business expenses were revealed in a review of her and her husband's tax returns by a certified accountant, prompting them to file amended returns, Sebelius wrote to top members of the Senate Finance Committee.

"As a result of these amendments to our 2005, 2006 and 2007 returns, we paid a total of $7,040 in additional tax and $878 in interest," she said in the letter to Max Baucus, the Democratic head of the committee, and Charles Grassley, its ranking Republican.

Before Sebelius, Obama's first choice as health secretary -- former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle -- withdrew after he acknowledged he delayed payment of some $140,000 in taxes and fines.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's nomination was criticized for late payment of $34,000 in taxes but he was eventually confirmed.

Baucus said he supported the nomination of Sebelius, who is due to testify to his committee on Thursday.

"Congress is going to need a strong partner at the Department of Health and Human Services to achieve comprehensive health reform this year, and we have that partner in Governor Sebelius," Baucus said in a statement.

A spokeswoman for Grassley said the senator "generally reserves judgment on nominees until the vetting process, including the nomination hearing, is completed."

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Seuss said:
Does it ever end?

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