February 2, 2009 7:32AM # Naïveté, Intégrité, Fraternité By [Michael F. Cannon](https://www.cato.org/people/michael-f-cannon) --- SHARE HHS secretary-nominee and former U.S. Senate majority leader Tom Daschle owed the IRS [more than $140,000](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/30/AR2009013003793_pf.html) in back taxes and interest. One contributing factor: a spokeswoman [says](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/31/AR2009013102021.html) Daschle “naively” believed that the Cadillac and driver provided gratis by a business partner was “nothing more than a generous offer from a friend.” A former Daschle aide [reassures us](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/31/AR2009013102021.html), “He’s the gold standard for integrity in government.” (Precisely the problem, isn’t it?) The *Washington Post* reports that none of this is likely to derail Daschle’s confirmation by his former Senate colleagues. “Senators also cited their personal knowledge of Daschle in justifying their willingness to dismiss the tax issue,” writes the *Post*. “He and his wife, Linda Hall Daschle, donated over the past two years to at least 14 senators who will be tasked with voting on his confirmation.” ##### Related Tags [General](https://www.cato.org/general), [Government and Politics](https://www.cato.org/government-politics) [![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).