THE UNDOING OF CHAVEZ WAS LINDA CHAVEZ

By now, most Americans have all but forgotten Linda Chavez and her short-lived nomination to be George W. Bush's secretary of labor. But they should remember her name, if for no other reason than it represents the notion that, in the Bush-Cheney administration, telling the truth is paramount. Even among Cabinet nominees.

Despite Democrats' claims, there is little doubt that Chavez was a qualified nominee who would have made an excellent labor secretary. But she chose to obfuscate her efforts to give aid and comfort to an illegal alien rather than laying out the facts at the first opportunity.

There will be some who say the Bush administration should have fought for Chavez' confirmation anyway. No. That wasn't an option. Once a nominee has chosen to play loose with facts, there is no turning back. Linda Chavez has only herself to blame.