Tom Daschle dropped out. Nancy Killefer dropped out. Bill Richardson dropped out. Timothy Geithner stayed, but many wondered if he would drop out. All these presidential political appointee nominations made by Barack Obama have made for a rocky start by young No. 44. I imagine some of the right-wing noise and hate machine are doing a little Hitler jig over the problems which have arisen early in Obama’s administration.
But the road to presidential tenure is littered with the names of nominees — from both Republican and Democratic parties — who faltered because of some skeleton in the closet. Some were early nominees such as Zoe Baird. Others were well on in the administration such as Douglas Ginsburg.
Disheartening as it may be for Obama supporters, the failed nominees who are exposed for their human frailties which are rightfully trumpeted by an alert media are nothing new. Such problems will continue to exist as long as human beings commit indiscretions in their past that they would rather not bring up but eventually emerge as the proverbial chicken coming home to roost. Such early stumbling, of course, is not good for 44 because he campaigned for a more ethical government.(His applications for political appointees convinced me at first glance that I didn’t want to unearth any possible can of worms from my past that I may have conveniently forgotten.) But so it goes.
What is heartening is that the folks we are talking about who dropped out, did so before taking office. I feel Bill Richardson is a very interesting and very astute politician, but I don’t know what all is in his past. If it turns out he is a crook, which I hopefully doubt, then it will be good rather than bad that he dropped out rather than he was busted for something ill while serving as the head of a major U.S. government department.
If one thinks about all the stinkers presidents have picked in our short time as a nation then we should feel ecstatic that a few bad apples were picked and thrown out into the great political s**t pile. Think of these names: Burr and Agnew, both picked by presidents as running mates. What about “Heck of a Job Brownie,”, the whole Watergate saga, A. Mitchell Palmer, Albert Fall, Donald Rumsfeld, and, of course, Alberto “VO5” Gonzales?”
It would have been better for the fledgling Obama administration if the mostly tax problems which dogged his appointees, due to whatever human shortfalls were caused by politicians who probably paid their price with a black hole for a legacy, happened. But they happened. Even better, they never had the chance to screw up once in office had they reached office and had they screwed up.
What is even better, no less than the president of the United States with less than a month into his administration, took responsibility for his having “messed up.” How refreshing is that? The buck stops here.
One would hope 44 doesn’t make a ship load more of major mistakes during however long he ultimately spends in that big white house across from Lafayette Park in “The District.” But friends and neighbors, I would bet you a dollar to a doughnut or, adjusted for inflation, $20 to a doughnut, that Obama will make another mistake during his first term.
Let us just hope that mistake isn’t that serious and let us hope he continues to be a man and admits to his mistakes, much unlike his predecessor.