President Obama’s administration took another hit today after Nancy Killefer withdrew her bid to be the Chief Performance Officer amid revelations that she failed to pay back-taxes. Killefer brings the administration’s tax scandal tally up to three: Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Health and Human Service pick Tom Daschle have both had to admit misfilings over the past two weeks.

Though she did not release many details of her current woes, Killefer reportedly wrote a letter to the president explaining that she had "come to realize in the current environment that my personal tax issue of DC unemployment tax could be used to create exactly the kind of distraction and delay" of her confirmation. That "tax issue" involves unpaid unemployment taxes for former employees.

Had she been confirmed as CPO, a new position created by the president, Killefer would have helped organize the government and the White House’s efforts to stabilize the budget and economy. Now she may just go back to being a consultant at McKinsey & Co. 

Obama had no comment on Killefer’s departure, despite the fact that a reporter asked him, point blank, why so many of his appointees had tax problems. We take it that’s not a matter the president wishes to address.