Geithner Confirmation Despicable

I find it absolutely despicable that the Senate voted to confirm Timothy Geithner’s appointment as Treasury Secretary today.  Is there absolutely no ethics left in this country?  As a student of ethics in college, I honestly do not see how anyone can make the argument that a person who apparently (and I only use the word apparently because I do not have indisputable proof) defrauded and knowingly cheated on his 2001–2004 tax returns should lead the Treasury Department which is also in charge of the IRS.  I don’t buy the argument that he is the only person qualified to take the position during this economic crisis.  Call me crazy, but just a shred of propriety, just an ounce of decency, just an inkling of ethics from our government would be greatly appreciated by its constituents.  When will we begin holding our elected officials accountable for their actions?

I think the only thing that bothers me more about this appointment is the media’s reporting of it.  The media knows that this confirmation even on the liberal side is not popular with the American people, so how does the media report it?  The Associated Press claims the following:

The 60-34 vote, in which handfuls of Republicans and Democrats voted against their party leaders, put Geithner at the helm of Obama’s economic team as it races to halt the worst financial slide in generations.

The final vote for Timothy Geithner’s confirmation was 60 to 34 with 4 Senators not voting.  And the Associated Press claims handfuls of Democrats and Republicans opposed the confirmation.  It appears the Associated Press does math as well as Geithner.  The truth is only 3 democrats voted nay against the confirmation that’s roughly 5% of Democrats voting nay.  On the other hand, 27 republicans voted nay against the confirmation which is roughly 60% of Republicans voting against the confirmation.  I would venture a guess that the Republican Senators came much closer to reflecting the people’s sentiments in this confirmation.  Why can’t the media get simple statistics correct?  It is such a mischaracterization of the votes to say handfuls of  Republicans and Democrats voted against the confirmation.  An accurate report by the Associated Press would have stated that a couple of Democrats and a majority of Republican Senators voted against the confirmation.  The Associated Press researched the actual votes as they reference further accurate statistics in their article, but they chose not to use language that accurately reflected those votes at the beginning of their article.  Not only was this a despicable confirmation but the reporting of it was despicable as well.

Here is a list of how each Senator voted as provided by the U.S. Senate’s website:

U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 111^th Congress – 1^st Session  as compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate

 Vote Summary 

Question: On the Nomination(Confirmation Timothy F. Geithner, of New York, to be Secretary of the Treasury )
Vote Number:	15	Vote Date:	January 26, 2009, 06:00 PM
Required For Majority:	1/2	Vote Result:	Nomination Confirmed
Nomination Number:	PN64-6
Nomination Description:	Timothy F. Geithner, of New York, to be Secretary of the Treasury

Vote Counts:	YEAs	60
	NAYs	34
	Not Voting	4

Alphabetical by Senator Name

Akaka (D-HI), Yea Alexander (R-TN), Nay Barrasso (R-WY), Nay Baucus (D-MT), Yea Bayh (D-IN), Yea Begich (D-AK), Yea Bennet (D-CO), Yea Bennett (R-UT), Nay Bingaman (D-NM), Yea Bond (R-MO), Not Voting Boxer (D-CA), Yea Brown (D-OH), Not Voting Brownback (R-KS), Nay Bunning (R-KY), Nay Burr (R-NC), Nay Burris (D-IL), Yea Byrd (D-WV), Nay Cantwell (D-WA), Yea Cardin (D-MD), Yea Carper (D-DE), Yea Casey (D-PA), Yea Chambliss (R-GA), Nay Coburn (R-OK), Nay Cochran (R-MS), Nay Collins (R-ME), Nay Conrad (D-ND), Yea Corker (R-TN), Yea Cornyn (R-TX), Yea Crapo (R-ID), Yea DeMint (R-SC), Nay Dodd (D-CT), Yea Dorgan (D-ND), Yea Durbin (D-IL), Yea

Ensign (R-NV), Yea Enzi (R-WY), Nay Feingold (D-WI), Nay Feinstein (D-CA), Yea Graham (R-SC), Yea Grassley (R-IA), Nay Gregg (R-NH), Yea Hagan (D-NC), Yea Harkin (D-IA), Nay Hatch (R-UT), Yea Hutchison (R-TX), Nay Inhofe (R-OK), Nay Inouye (D-HI), Yea Isakson (R-GA), Nay Johanns (R-NE), Nay Johnson (D-SD), Yea Kaufman (D-DE), Yea Kennedy (D-MA), Not Voting Kerry (D-MA), Yea Klobuchar (D-MN), Yea Kohl (D-WI), Yea Kyl (R-AZ), Nay Landrieu (D-LA), Yea Lautenberg (D-NJ), Yea Leahy (D-VT), Yea Levin (D-MI), Yea Lieberman (ID-CT), Yea Lincoln (D-AR), Yea Lugar (R-IN), Nay Martinez (R-FL), Nay McCain (R-AZ), Nay McCaskill (D-MO), Yea McConnell (R-KY), Nay

Menendez (D-NJ), Yea Merkley (D-OR), Yea Mikulski (D-MD), Yea Murkowski (R-AK), Nay Murray (D-WA), Yea Nelson (D-FL), Yea Nelson (D-NE), Yea Pryor (D-AR), Yea Reed (D-RI), Yea Reid (D-NV), Yea Risch (R-ID), Nay Roberts (R-KS), Nay Rockefeller (D-WV), Yea Sanders (I-VT), Nay Schumer (D-NY), Yea Sessions (R-AL), Nay Shaheen (D-NH), Yea Shelby (R-AL), Yea Snowe (R-ME), Yea Specter (R-PA), Nay Stabenow (D-MI), Yea Tester (D-MT), Yea Thune (R-SD), Nay Udall (D-CO), Yea Udall (D-NM), Yea Vitter (R-LA), Nay Voinovich (R-OH), Yea Warner (D-VA), Yea Webb (D-VA), Yea Whitehouse (D-RI), Yea Wicker (R-MS), Nay Wyden (D-OR), Not Voting