Should Daschle Withdraw?

Despite his tax difficulties, Tom Daschle plans to continue to seek out his nomination to be secretary of Health and Human Services. But he will have to do so without the support of two liberal establishments: The New York Times op-ed page and The Nation. The Times editorializes today that Daschle should withdraw his nomination: “The American tax system depends heavily on voluntary compliance. It would send a terrible message to the public if we ignore the failure of yet another high-level nominee to comply with the tax laws.” Katrina Vanden Heuvel, the editor of The Nation, agrees: “Daschle's potential conflicts of interest should persuade Obama to make this a ‘teachable moment’ and find another public servant to tackle the critical task of healthcare reform.”