Opinion: Another Obama official bites dust with tax problems

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Nancy Killefer, named by President Obama as his chief performance expert at the Office of Management and Budget, has withdrawn her nomination on account of -- among other things -- tax problems!

The 55-year-old executive tapped to serve as the watchdog on wasteful government spending had a $900 tax lien on her home in 2005 for failing to pay unemployment compensation tax on household help, according to the Associated Press. Killefer works for the consulting giant McKinsey & Co. (See video down below.)

She is the third Obama official to run into tax troubles.

Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle‘s nomination to be secretary of Health and Human Services is at a tipping point over his failure to pay $146,000 in back taxes, some of it on a limousine and driver he used in his personal life. And Treasury Secrertary Timothy Geithner was confirmed after confessing that he, now the nominal head of the Internal Revenue Service, had failed to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes while an employee at the International Monetary Fund.

After calling for a ‘new era of responsibility’ in his inaugural speech, Obama is coming under increased fire for seemingly applying a double standard. The Boston Globe’s Peter Canellos noted this morning that the president seems to have rigorous rules for Wall Street fat cats but looser ones for his top advisors.

And some are starting to question the vetting process or decision-making abilities of the once-vaunted Obama machine. Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the Finance Committee hearing Daschle’s explanations, told CNN:

Her letter of resignation is posted below.

-- Johanna Neuman

Speaking of important messages, register here for cellphone alerts on each new Ticket item. RSS feeds are also available here. And we’re now on Amazon’s Kindle as well.