From PRI, Public Radio International and KCRW Santa Monica, this is To the Point.

Ethics and Accountability at the Obama White House.

Hello again, I'm Mormon Olney, and this is To the Point from Public Radio International.

A daily look at the issues Americans care about most.

With top-level

appointees admitting they didn't pay federal taxes, President Obama told TV interviewers last night,

I screwed up. The promise of tough standards to change the culture of Washington has created

expectations that are hard to meet. The New York Times called it his rockiest day. The Los Angeles Times said he was

punching the restart button on his presidency. Did the vetting process go wrong? Was their

poor political judgment? Has the president's major asset, his popularity with the public, been

put at risk? Will his personal efforts at damage control get his health reform and economic rescue programs back on track?

First, here's the news.

Support for To the Point comes from subscribers of KCRW Santa Monica and from the Public Radio International Program Fund,

whose contributors include the Ford Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. McArthur Foundation,

and the Rockefeller Foundation,

and its campaign for American workers. More at rockfound.org. Hello again, Wamanalni, back with

To the Poet. Two of President Obama's top appointees withdrew yesterday because they failed to pay

federal taxes. Is changing the culture of Washington easier said than done? Will the political

distraction interfere with efforts at policy change?

The financial crisis was front and center today

with the announcement of plans to tighten restrictions

on the compensation of executives of banks and other companies

...