Illegal Hire, Tax Issues May Trouble Geithner

GOP's Grassley on Treasury nominee's case ahead of hearings
By Ambreen Ali,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 13, 2009 3:14 PM CST
Illegal Hire, Tax Issues May Trouble Geithner
Similar issues have derailed past nominations. President Clinton lost his first two attorney general picks because they allegedly didn't pay for household help.   (AP Photo)

Timothy Geithner’s Treasury secretary nomination could be threatened by allegations he hired illegal help and didn’t pay Social Security and Medicare taxes while self-employed, the Wall Street Journal reports today. Senate Finance Committee members are meeting privately to discuss the issues, raised by GOP Sen. Charles Grassley. Aides to President-elect Obama insist the infractions are minor.

The housekeeper in question continued working for Geithner after her papers expired, but later obtained a green card. As for the taxes, Geithner paid them off when alerted by the IRS about the mistake. While no charges were filed in either case, such hurdles have been enough to keep past nominees from being confirmed; Geithner’s confirmation hearings begin Thursday. (More Barack Obama stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X