Not only was Bernard Kerik, the Bush nominee for the post of Homeland Security, a deadbeat, https://adultfyi.com/read.aspx?ID=7276, seems he was also hiring illegal immigrants as well. And because of that Kerik is turning down the nomination.

New York- Former New York top cop Bernard Kerik abruptly pulled his nomination as President Bush’s new homeland security boss last night, saying he feared an embarrassing nanny scandal.

“I uncovered information that now leads me to question the immigration status of a person who had been in my employ as a housekeeper and nanny,” Kerik said in a statement.

“It has also been brought to my attention that for a period of time during such employment required tax payments and related filings had not been made.”

The bombshell decision caught the White House off-guard and sent Bush scrambling for a new candidate to run the sprawling bureaucracy of 22 federal agencies.

“I can’t believe they let this [the nomination] through and didn’t know about it,” a White House official complained of the political vetting process before nominations are made. “They should have known about this.”

Kerik told the President of his choice in an 8:30 p.m. phone call.

A source close to Kerik said he agonized over his decision, but wasn’t forced into it.

“They [the White House] did not ask him to do this, they did not ask him to pull it,” the source said. “He feels awful about this.”

Kerik said he feared that the disclosure would generate intense scrutiny that would “only serve as a significant and unnecessary distraction to the vital efforts of the Department of Homeland Security.”

In a formal letter to Bush, Kerik wrote, “I am convinced that, for personal reasons, moving forward would not be in the best interests of your administration, the Department of Homeland Security or the American people.”

The White House said Bush accepted Kerik’s decision.

Kerik’s old boss, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, had lobbied Bush heavily to give the ex-commish the job, but backed Kerik’s decision to pull out.

“I feel very bad about this for everyone including the country because Bernie would have been an exceptional homeland security chief,” he said.

Giulaini dismissed suggestions that Kerik dropped out because of media reports about business links to security companies that are or may be clients of the Department of Homeland Security. “All that stuff was very manageable,” said Giuliani.

Friends said the nanny problem developed while Kerik, who has two young daughters, was in Iraq helping to form an Iraqi police force.

Some observers said it was unlikely the Senate would reject Kerik under those circumstances, but Giuliani said this was one issue “that was not manageable,” considering that Kerik would oversee immigration enforcement.

The fall of Kerik, 49, was sudden, but reporters had been delving into his background since the nomination a week ago.

After an initial glowing reception that included strong support from New York’s Democratic Sens. Charles Schumer and Hillary Clinton, negative media reports were starting to surface.

Sources told the Daily News that FBI Director Robert Mueller was starting a file on the public controversies to make sure nothing caught him off-guard, even as FBI agents were beginning formal background checks.

The most troubling new reports about Kerik were accounts that he earned some $6 million by exercising stock options from Taser International, which is seeking business with the Department of Homeland Security.

He drew sharp criticism for bugging out of his Iraq police job just 14 weeks into his six-month assignment. Although his mission was to help build a strong and efficient Iraqi police force, that force remains mostly a joke.

Other issues have dogged Kerik. Last summer, questions arose about his decision as police commissioner to order four high-tech $50,000 security doors for headquarters. The Internal Affairs Bureau found no wrongdoing, but noted that a proper engineering study wasn’t done.

As the city’s Corrections Department boss, Kerik allegedly “blocked the promotion of a qualified jail supervisor” because the man had reprimanded a female officer Kerik had dated. Both allegations, however, remain unproven.

Some of his appointees have also wound up in hot water. Last June, a Kerik crony was sentenced to a year in prison for embezzling $142,733 from a charity. Kerik was one of four people ever on the charity’s board, but denied knowledge of its finances. The former boss of Rikers Island, whom Kerik had promoted six times, is facing allegations he pressured underlings to work on Republican political campaigns.

A rap that didn’t stick happened three years ago when Kerik allegedly sent five top homicide cops to the homes of some Fox News staffers – one as far away as New Jersey – when talk-show host Judith Regan suspected them of stealing her cell phone. Regan is the publisher of Kerik’s memoir “The Lost Son.”

The outraged Fox folk threatened a suit against the city and Kerik, but later gave up the idea. Kerik swore he never gave his gumshoes that particular go-ahead.

Kerik also used NYPD investigators to research the murder of his mother, a former prostitute killed when he was 4, for his book. He had to pay the city $2,500 under a settlement with the Conflict of Interest Board.

In the 1980s, while working as chief of investigations for a Saudi Arabian hospital complex, Kerik allegedly abused his authority to delve into the private lives of women with whom his boss was romantically involved.

Kerik is not the first official to fall victim to the “nanny problem.” Similar issues killed the nominations of three candidates for posts in the Clinton administration.

One administration official helping prepare Kerik for Senate confirmation said Kerik’s unexpected decision shocked senior leaders at the Homeland Security Department.

The official said Kerik still had not filled out all his ethics filings – which would detail his sources of income and financial liabilities – and said the FBI background investigation of Kerik was still incomplete.

Rep. Pete King (R-L.I.) said the White House earlier in the day had E-mailed him some talking points in support of Kerik for King’s appearance on CNN yesterday.

“Clearly, nobody in the White House knew this was going to happen,” said King.

“Personally I’m very surprised and disappointed for New York, the nation and for Bernie. I was very confident he would be confirmed.”