photo: WashingtonPost.com

Let’s go on a trip down memory lane to the not-too-distant past.

In 1986, Linda Chavez left her high ranking post in the Reagan Administration to run for the U.S. Senate against Maryland liberal Barbara Mikulski (a political clone of Barbara Boxer, but that’s another story). In a bad year for Republicans, Chavez lost the race.

In 2001, President George W. Bush nominated Chavez to a post in his cabinet as Secretary of Labor. Chavez was soon forced out because it was alleged that she had employed an illegal immigrant 10 years earlier. Subsequent investigation uncovered that Chavez had not, in fact employed the woman in question, but had sheltered her and given her some emergency assistance because the woman was threatened with domestic abuse. The woman, Marta Mercado, is now a U.S. citizen.

Contrast the political uproar and media storm over Chavez’ nomination with the quiescent reaction of our electeds in the halls of Congress and our pals over at CNN and the New York Times regarding President-elect Obama’s nomination of Timothy Geithner to be the Secretary of the Treasury.

Geithner, you may recall, is the man who may soon be in charge of trillions of our tax dollars who thinks paying taxes is only for the little people. While working for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from 2001 to 2004, Geithner failed to pay self-employment taxes totaling more than $45,000 including interest. Interestingly, the IMF, an international entity, pays its employees’ taxes and even sends them a notice regarding the taxes owed.

Just to ram the point home that laws are meant for some and not for others, Geithner also employed an illegal immigrant as a housekeeper (“Haven’t we all?” the U.S. Senators conducting the confirmation hearing must be thinking to themselves.)

So, Mr. Geithner, soon to be fifth in the line of succession to the President, right behind soon-to-be Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, gets a pass for not paying taxes and for employing an illegal immigrant while Linda Chavez, in line for Labor Secretary, gets destroyed for giving a woman in danger some humanitarian assistance.

God bless America: land of the free and the home of the double standard.