One of the more ironic twists in the current election season has been the Liberal mainstream media or MSM (a/k/a “friend of the working class") assailing every working person in sight!
When McCain failed to nominate “another rich white guy” (the media’s set attacks for Romney, Lieberman or Giuliani), they went apoplectic over Sarah Palin.
These so-called “friends of the working people” weren’t so friendly to one of our own.
I wonder why...Oh wait, no I don’t, it’s the ideology.
When the MSM found that its sliming was not having the intended effect, they retreated to, “It’s all about McCain.”
Now the race has been impacted by yet another “average Joe,” a plumber from Ohio named Samuel Joseph “Joe” Wurzelbacher, over an exchange between the plumber and Barack Obama, when the Presidential nominee was campaigning for votes on Mr. Wurzelbacher’s street.
“Joe the Plumber” told Barack Obama he didn’t much care for his tax plan, expressing his own aspirations to one day own the plumbing company he works for, upon which Barack Obama began to expound upon the “need to spread the wealth around.”
So, what was the response by a once chastened MSM and the Obama camp?
Perhaps a serious consideration of why so many relatively low income, wage-earners oppose redistributionist programs designed ostensibly to “help them?”
Not a chance.
Remember, not many in the MSM or in politics took a lot of math, so logic isn’t their strong suit.
But if you said, “How about reverting to form and sliming Joe Wurzelbacher like he was a red-headed Sarah Palin?”
Bingo! Now that’s the ticket! You nailed it.
Yes, we skipped right over all that working class aspiration stuff and learned that Joe’s real first name is (gasp!) Samuel.
OK, what’s the point? I know a guy named Lido James S. who goes by “Jim.” I’ll take it on faith that both Lido James S. and Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher know their own names – Jim and Joe, respectively.
Oh yeah, and for years, Barack Obama went by the name “Barry.” So, what’s in a name?
We also learned that “Joe the Plumber” doesn’t have a “plumber’s license.”
Well, it turns out you don’t NEED a plumber’s license to work as an apprentice with a licensed plumber. Apparently Joe’s working on the license and would need it to buy the business he currently works for.
We also learned that “Joe the Plumber” has a tax lien registered against him. According to Barb Losie, deputy clerk of the Lucas County Court of Common Pleas, "There is a judgment lien against him for nonpayment of income tax," adding, “There is a 99 percent chance he doesn't know about the lien, unless he did a credit report or was ready to pay his taxes."
Losie said Wurzelbacher owes $1,182 from January 2007, but no action has been taken against him outside of filing the lien.
What we didn’t learn from the MSM (although it’s widely available online thanks to the likes of Instapundit, Michelle Malkin and the Volokh Conspiracy to name but a few) Barack Obama has his own tax problems, ones that are far more ethically serious than “Joe the Plumber’s.”
According to Jim Lindgren at the Volokh Conspiracy, “Just to remind you, Illinois prohibits state legislators from “taking speaking fees, and Barack Obama reported speaking fees.”
“Apparently, as an Illinois state legislator through 2004, Barack was prohibited from taking honoraria for speaking under the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act.
“But what about Barack Obama’s 2000 and 2002 tax returns?
“2000: On his 2000 Schedule C-EZ, Barack reported that he received $16,500 as a “Foundation director/Educational speaker.”
“2001: On his 2001 Schedule C-EZ, Barack reported $98,158 from a Chicago law firm, Miner, Barnhill, for “Legal services/attorney” (and nothing for speaking).
“2002: On his 2002 Schedule C, Barack reported $34,491 for “LEGAL SERVCES / SPEAKING FEES.”
These “speaking fees” are in addition to the amounts that Barack was paid as an employee, a lecturer at the University of Chicago, reported on the first page of his 1040s.
“The Illinois Governmental Ethics Act (apparently last changed in 1995) provides:
(5 ILCS 420/2-110)
“Sec. 2-110. Honoraria.
(a) No member of the General Assembly shall accept any honorarium.
(b) As used in this Section:
When McCain failed to nominate “another rich white guy” (the media’s set attacks for Romney, Lieberman or Giuliani), they went apoplectic over Sarah Palin.
These so-called “friends of the working people” weren’t so friendly to one of our own.
I wonder why...Oh wait, no I don’t, it’s the ideology.
When the MSM found that its sliming was not having the intended effect, they retreated to, “It’s all about McCain.”
Now the race has been impacted by yet another “average Joe,” a plumber from Ohio named Samuel Joseph “Joe” Wurzelbacher, over an exchange between the plumber and Barack Obama, when the Presidential nominee was campaigning for votes on Mr. Wurzelbacher’s street.
“Joe the Plumber” told Barack Obama he didn’t much care for his tax plan, expressing his own aspirations to one day own the plumbing company he works for, upon which Barack Obama began to expound upon the “need to spread the wealth around.”
So, what was the response by a once chastened MSM and the Obama camp?
Perhaps a serious consideration of why so many relatively low income, wage-earners oppose redistributionist programs designed ostensibly to “help them?”
Not a chance.
Remember, not many in the MSM or in politics took a lot of math, so logic isn’t their strong suit.
But if you said, “How about reverting to form and sliming Joe Wurzelbacher like he was a red-headed Sarah Palin?”
Bingo! Now that’s the ticket! You nailed it.
Yes, we skipped right over all that working class aspiration stuff and learned that Joe’s real first name is (gasp!) Samuel.
OK, what’s the point? I know a guy named Lido James S. who goes by “Jim.” I’ll take it on faith that both Lido James S. and Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher know their own names – Jim and Joe, respectively.
Oh yeah, and for years, Barack Obama went by the name “Barry.” So, what’s in a name?
We also learned that “Joe the Plumber” doesn’t have a “plumber’s license.”
Well, it turns out you don’t NEED a plumber’s license to work as an apprentice with a licensed plumber. Apparently Joe’s working on the license and would need it to buy the business he currently works for.
We also learned that “Joe the Plumber” has a tax lien registered against him. According to Barb Losie, deputy clerk of the Lucas County Court of Common Pleas, "There is a judgment lien against him for nonpayment of income tax," adding, “There is a 99 percent chance he doesn't know about the lien, unless he did a credit report or was ready to pay his taxes."
Losie said Wurzelbacher owes $1,182 from January 2007, but no action has been taken against him outside of filing the lien.
What we didn’t learn from the MSM (although it’s widely available online thanks to the likes of Instapundit, Michelle Malkin and the Volokh Conspiracy to name but a few) Barack Obama has his own tax problems, ones that are far more ethically serious than “Joe the Plumber’s.”
According to Jim Lindgren at the Volokh Conspiracy, “Just to remind you, Illinois prohibits state legislators from “taking speaking fees, and Barack Obama reported speaking fees.”
“Apparently, as an Illinois state legislator through 2004, Barack was prohibited from taking honoraria for speaking under the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act.
“But what about Barack Obama’s 2000 and 2002 tax returns?
“2000: On his 2000 Schedule C-EZ, Barack reported that he received $16,500 as a “Foundation director/Educational speaker.”
“2001: On his 2001 Schedule C-EZ, Barack reported $98,158 from a Chicago law firm, Miner, Barnhill, for “Legal services/attorney” (and nothing for speaking).
“2002: On his 2002 Schedule C, Barack reported $34,491 for “LEGAL SERVCES / SPEAKING FEES.”
These “speaking fees” are in addition to the amounts that Barack was paid as an employee, a lecturer at the University of Chicago, reported on the first page of his 1040s.
“The Illinois Governmental Ethics Act (apparently last changed in 1995) provides:
(5 ILCS 420/2-110)
“Sec. 2-110. Honoraria.
(a) No member of the General Assembly shall accept any honorarium.
(b) As used in this Section:
"Honorarium" means a payment of money to a member of the General Assembly for an appearance or speech . . . .”
OK, so we’ve REALLY learned that both “Joe the Plumber” and Barry...I mean Barack Obama have had self-imposed name changes and both have ongoing tax problems!
OK, aside from all that trivia, isn’t there some room to address the crux of what Joe Wurzelbacher’s exchange with Obama meant?
Liberals scream, “Sam the non-plumber would benefit from Obama’s tax plan.”
Of course that’s based on Joe’s current status, as a $45,000/year plumber’s assistant and it discounts his aspirations, which is what he based his question about Obama’s tax policy on.
Moreover, like the vast majority of decent, hardworking Americans, Joe doesn’t want to benefit at someone else’s expense, as he replied to those reporters who told him of his Obama-plan windfall, “If you believed [Obama], I’d be receiving his tax cuts, but I don’t look at it that way,” he said. “He’d still be hurting others.”
No wonder the Left reviles Joe Wurzelbacher, he’s a real working American!
