Now it's Hilda Solis' turn. According to the Associated Press, Barack Obama's nomination to be be Labor Secretary has had her confirmation hearings put on hold because facts have emerged about her husband's tax payments — or lack of them. Yesterday Solis' husband, Sam Sayyad, got around to paying $6,400 in tax liens against his auto repair shop — after they'd been outstanding for 16 years. Both Solis and Sayyad claim not to have known about the liens against Sam's Foreign and Domestic Auto Center until asked about them this week. USA Today first reported Thursday that L.A. County records “showed 15 outstanding state and county tax liens against Sam Sayyad and his auto repair business, totaling $7,630.”

Solis photo: Evan Vucci, AP

The El Monte Congresswoman becomes the fifth Obama nominee to be embroiled in tax questions. Three nominees have withdrawn their applications while a fourth, Timothy Geithner, had an uncomfortable spotlight thrown on his nonpayment of $35,000 in self-employment taxes, before he was confirmed as the Treasury Secretary. On Tuesday Tom Daschle, nominated to head the Health and Human Services Department, and Nancy Killefer, nominated as the White House's chief performance officer, dropped out after their own tax problems were revealed. The revelations about Sayyad's tax liens are not now expected to endanger the appointment of Solis, who is not a partner in her husband's business.

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