 WASHINGTON - Tom Daschle, nominated to be health secretary, did not pay more than $128,000 in taxes over three years, a revelation that poses a potential obstacle to his Senate confirmation. But the Democratic-controlled Congress has figured out that Tom is possibly "Too Cool To Pay Taxes," and will allow it.
The back taxes plus $12,000 in interest and penalties involved unreported consulting fees, questionable charitable contributions, and a car and driver provided by a private equity firm run by entrepreneur and longtime Democratic Party donor Leo J. Hindery Jr., according to a “confidential draft” report prepared by Senate Finance Committee staff.
A spokeswoman for Daschle confirmed that he recently paid back taxes in excess of $100,000, but she did not disclose the extent of his tax errors and the timeline of when he and others addressed them. ABC News revealed that the timeline of the payment of his back taxes occurred exactly thirty minutes after he was phoned by President Obama to be the Health Secretary.
 Daschle said, "Taxes? Give me a frickin' break. Only commoners pay taxes. I'll pay this crap now that the media is making a stink about it, but I don't think I have to actually pay taxes like you people. And this is a pretty damn cool job, so I guess I'll pay it. What is the salary for this position? There are obviously going to be monetary kickbacks, right?"
Daschle paid the back taxes just six days before his first Senate confirmation hearing, the report said.
Daschle, one of President Barack Obama’s earliest and most steadfast campaign supporters, is the second Obama Cabinet nominee to acknowledge tax errors. On Jan. 13, Tim Geithner, who was chosen to run the Treasury Department, disclosed that he had forgotten to pay income taxes and subsequently paid $43,000 in taxes and penalties. He was sworn in on Jan. 26. He was paid extra money every year at the IMF just to offset having to pay income taxes, but still forgot that he had to actually pay that income tax. Geithner will now be the boss of the Internal Revenue Service division.
 Because of an apparent clerical error by an equity firm, Daschle did not report more than $83,000 in consulting fees in 2007 and has not provided sufficient documentation relating to $15,000 in charitable contributions of his used underwear over three years, according to the Finance Committee report. The report established that most of the used underwear had burn-holes in the rear from the tremendous amount of hot air that Daschle expelled during his years as a Senator.
He has been called to appear before the panel, which has yet to vote on his nomination, Monday in a closed-door session, committee staff said. It will be a closed-door session to make sure that the public does not have to hear about his shameful behavior before he is confirmed.
Daschle intends to amend his tax returns a second time because he forgot to pay Medicare taxes on the additional taxable income he incurred related to his use of the car service. The lapse was discovered by Finance Committee staff. Daschle described the payments as, "Pure crap. Who pays Medicare on limo service? That is just crap, but I'll pay it, fine."
 In addition to earning $2.1 million from the law firm Alston & Bird, the former Senate majority leader has been on the payroll of Hindery’s private equity firm, InterMedia Advisors, since he left the Senate in 2005, earning $2 million last year, according to documents filed with the Office of Government Ethics.
Daschle’s failure to inform the IRS about the car service was first reported late Friday by ABC News. Obama formally nominated Daschle on Dec. 11, though public reports of his intention to tap the South Dakota Democrat emerged shortly after Election Day.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs declined to answer questions about when and how Obama transition officials learned of Daschle’s tax problems, but did offer this quote: "I, ah, don't, ah, really know, ah, why, ah, Tom, ah, spaced, ah, his, ah, taxes. Ahhhhhhhhh." Gibbs apoligized for so many ahs, and said they happen after every word because he has a severe speech impediment, which qualified him for the position of White House Press Secretary.
In a statement, he said: “Senator Daschle brought these issues to the Finance Committee’s attention when he submitted his nomination forms, and we are confident the committee is going to schedule a hearing for him very soon and he will be confirmed. All of you other people out there, you better pay your taxes, too,” he added.
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