Video: Facing Cadillac tax problems, Daschle should’ve kept the Pontiac

Here’s an ironic footnote to news that Sen. Tom Daschle, the South Dakota Democrat and Obama’s pick for Health and Human Services head, failed to pay taxes related to a Cadillac that carried him about Washington for three years: An old (but undated) campaign ad has surfaced on YouTube, and it praises Daschle’s frugality for driving a rusted, oil-burning Pontiac “since 1971.”

Yesterday Daschle explained the tax issue surrounding his newer un-jalopy-like wheels and more than $350,000 in unreported income and improper deductions related to it: “My failure to recognize that the use of a car was income and not a gift from a good friend was a mistake. It was completely inadvertent. But that’s no excuse, and I deeply apologize to President Obama, to my colleagues and to the American people.”

Update 12:08: Daschle has withdrawn his nomination as HHS head.

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