When Obama first came to office, his nominees were plagued with tax-evasion issues.

And that problem hasn't gone away

Lael Brainard, nominee for undersecretary of the Treasury for international affairs, was late on paying real estate taxes in 2005, 2006, and 2007.

AP: The report by the Senate Finance Committee staff also challenges the accuracy of a deduction Brainard claimed for running an office from her home. The challenge led Brainard to reduce the deduction on her 2008 return.



The committee's top Republican is unhappy that the committee staff had to submit 10 sets of questions to Brainard before getting complete information about the discrepancies. Brainard is the fifth Obama nominee to have tax problems.

All this over a few years of deferred real estate taxes? Who WASN'T late paying their taxes in 2006 and 2007? If you'll recall, Timothy Geithner also ran into trouble with his nomination after failing to pay taxes in 2001.