Editor's Letter: "The Ways of Washington"
President Obama vowed to bring in an era of clean government, but cognitive dissonance has set in early with the nomination of several candidates who don't meet the new standards.
Barack Obama rode into town vowing to usher in a new era of clean government and to change “the ways of Washington.” The cognitive dissonance set in early, of course, when his choice for treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner, had to explain how he had neglected to pay $35,000 in self-employment taxes. This week, Obama’s pick for secretary of health and human services, former Sen. Tom Daschle, was forced to withdraw after it emerged that he’d failed to pay taxes for a car and driver provided by an investment firm that Daschle was advising.
Tax problems led to Daschle’s downfall, but I was struck by another aspect of the story. After he left the Senate, Daschle cashed in his public service for a lucrative gig as a Washington fixer, raking in $5 million in four years. His clients included health-care firms with enormous stakes in the reforms that the Obama administration hopes to enact. So what else is new? Hundreds of former lawmakers and other ex-senior officials are registered lobbyists, while thousands more fuel the influence industry as consultants and all-purpose schmoozers. K Street is absolutely brimming with people once responsible for overseeing the very interests that now pay them, and it’s impossible not to wonder how the promise of a future fat paycheck affects the judgments of those in power. During the campaign, Obama repeatedly railed against this pernicious “revolving door,” and he quickly enacted tougher rules aimed at curbing the role of lobbyists in his administration. But he just as quickly made several exceptions, citing the need to get the best people. That sure sounds a lot like the old “ways of Washington.”
Eric Effron
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Supreme Court to resolve Louisiana gerrymander
Speed Read The court will hear a case challenging the second majority-Black district in the state
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Boeing machinists approve contract, end strike
Speed Read The company's largest union approved the new contract offer, ending a seven-week strike
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
America might be in a second Gilded Age
In the Spotlight The first Gilded Age was marked by rising inequality and a push for social change
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
US election: who the billionaires are backing
The Explainer More have endorsed Kamala Harris than Donald Trump, but among the 'ultra-rich' the split is more even
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK Published
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
1 of 6 'Trump Train' drivers liable in Biden bus blockade
Speed Read Only one of the accused was found liable in the case concerning the deliberate slowing of a 2020 Biden campaign bus
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
It does happen here
Opinion Our long history of rounding people up and kicking them out
By Susan Caskie Published
-
Taking away the car keys
Opinion Getting old demands acceptance of necessary losses
By William Falk Published