No sooner did Joe the Plumber become a folk hero for conservatives, articlating the Republican message on the economy and job creation better than our party’s presidential nominee, than he becomes subject to rabid attacks from the left.
Kind of sounds like the hazing we go through when we come out to our gay friends as conservatives.
They ridicule him for not having a license without bothering to mention that in Ohio, “he only needs [one] for commercial work, not residential work.“Â And they bring up his tax lien.
Ol’ Doc Sullivan is even making an issue of the fact that Joe is not his first name. Turns out it’s his middle name. Given that Daniel is my middle name, guess Andrew’ll be coming after me for having all (but a handful) of my friends call me Dan or Daniel.
Tom Elia observes that Joe’s getting “the treatment” for criticizing “a Chicago Democrat running for president.” Jim Geraghty spells out that treatment:
This is the way our opponents operate now. Destroy anyone who stands in your way. Humiliate them. Make sure that anyone else who ever wants to skeptically question Barack Obama knows that every last bit of their dirty laundry will be aired for all the world to see. Bristol Palin, Trig Palin, — hey, it’s all fair game. They’ve got to make an example of them. Show them that this sort of dangerous speech won’t be allowed in the New America
As Glenn Reynolds observes, the media have “done more investigations into Joe the Plumber in 24 hours than they’ve done on Barack Obama in two years.”
Just as we gay Republicans find our views more closely scrutinized more regularly savaged* than those of our gay peers who toe the left-wing line.
UPDATE: Greg Pollowitz: “I can almost guarantee there will be far more national MSM coverage of Joe’s tax problems than there was of Charlie Rangel’s “no hablo” tax defense.” Sad truth of media bias, critic of the media’s anointed candidate gets less scrutiny the the Democratic chaiman of the House Committee which writes our tax laws. And the tax problems of the latter are more relevant to his work.
UP-UPDATE: Michelle Malkin writes: “But Team Obama will grasp at any straw to bring this guy down.” Read the whole thing!
More updates after the jump.
UP-UP-UPDATE: JTPDS** sets in. From a Corner reader:
the way the pro-Obama media and bloggers, and Obama himself, have responded to Joe has got me nearly shaking with rage. They are attempting to destroy a man — a private citizen — who had the audacity to ask The One a question. Mind you, Joe was on his front lawn playing football with his son when Obama strolled up to give him his hopenchange spiel. Obama approached Joe, not the other way around. And Joe asked Obama an honest question. And Obama gave him an honest — and very, very revealing — answer. Again, mind you, the embarassment was on Obama’s end, not Joe’s. It wasn’t a gotcha question.
And yet, for that Joe is being pilloried, every aspect of his private and professional life being sorted through and exposed. To prove … what? What does that have to do with Obama’s answer? What does Joe’s situation have to do with Obama’s philosophical answer — that he wants to “spread the wealth”? Obama’s answer goes down the memory hole while the nation concentrates its fire on obliterating Joe the Plumber.
Yeah, just like a gay Republican, pilloried for challenging the orthodoxy.
UP-UP-UP-UPDATE:Â Is this why the left hates Joe so?
Why is this guy such a threat to Obama and the left? Because he’s the only guy who has dared to use the word that Obama fears most: Socialism. And he explained it in a way that millions of middle Americans can understand. He’s an unapologetic supporter of his country and the American spirit and wants to see success rewarded and not punished by excessive taxation. And to Joe, and millions of other Americans, it doesn’t matter whether that success is a small plumbing company or Microsoft.
*Revised as per this comment.
**Joe the Plumber Derangement Syndrome.
It’s a warning from the left. Don’t criticize the Dear Leader, gusano, or we’ll f-ck up your sh-t!
Bill Clinton was right. Obama is just a Chicago thug.
I’m pissed.
I’m pissed.
Oh please, our views aren’t more closely scrutinized, they don’t even bother to listen to or look at our views!
They just attack like rabid dogs — just like they are attacking Joe.
I believe Republicans vote based on their belief that the vote will be best for the country — gay Republicans even more so. Democrats vote for what they believe is best for themselves.
That is the whole basis for the whole, “What’s The Matter With Kansas,” phenomenon. Democrats just can’t fathom why a voter, especially a gay voter, could ever vote for a cause greater then themselves.
David
Fair point, LifeTrek, maybe our views aren’t more closely scrutinized, we’re just more harshly attacked.
Seems the plumbers’ unions are trying to strip Joe of his job.
I just went to Google news to verify a rumor that Glenn Beck was leaving CNN for FoxNews. (BTW… True! Way to go, fellow Saint!) You know what was on top of their news page?
2,417 stories attacking Joe the Plumber!
What the hell?
V the K, the left-wing attack media works fast!
Know what also annoys me? It does not seem to matter that Obama was “mentored” by a pedophile (Davis) in Hawaii or that his best-buddy (Ayers) was bisexual …. but it’s “ok” for those Chicago Way-ward thugs to attack Sarah Palin’s family, to disparage her (and her family’s) sex lives and NOW to ridicule a middle class guy soley to create a smoke screen to cover Obama’s “share the wealth” flub.
I pray their tactics backfire —- I’m mad as hell about the whole ruse being perpetrated by the Barack Obama campaign.
Joe the plumber has also been accused of being related to some one who was in the involved in the Keating mess. If so, so what? I hope that all this publicity in the end does make Joe pay more taxes. I hope that he can cash-in on his new found celebrity status. The abuse that the left has inflicted upon him for asking Obama an honest question and finally getting an honest answer from Obma is just astounding.
You mark my words…..the Chosen One will prove to be the Chicago Thug Politician he is and every time any one criticizes him, he and his thugs will pull the “R” word on you and I don’t mean accusing you of being a Republican…..
so every time anyone disagrees with The Chosen One, they get called out with the R card….
we will have 4 to 8 years of this misery as the Chief Marxist and hell no I won’t take it and I sure hope we don’t have to.
I am listening to McCain speak at the Alfred Smith dinner. God bless Joe the plumber.
#4: awesome comment. I think you have it in a nutshell (so to speak).
These people vote their selfish interest and will crush anyone who stands in their way.
How long before the Two Minutes’ Hate?
I’m really worried… if Barry wins and the Dems make 60 seats in the Senate, alternative media is in trouble. Limbaugh will wind up podcasting from the Caymans and bloggers will start having to register with the gubmint.
An attentive populace with any sense of decency would be repulsed by the never-ending parade of assaults on “just plain folks” and Down’s babies. But I’m not seeing it.
They will do anything to distract for Obama’s answer to a legitimate question. He shot himself in the foot with and acccidentally exposed who he really is, a socialist. So, of course, attack and demonize the guy who asked the question. This is what the left has become. If the MSM had spent as much time investigation Obama’s associations and views as it has spent on investigating Joe the Plumber, it might have some credibility left. This IS going to backfire on Obama, and rightly so.
I read that Joe the Plumber isn’t really Joe, isn’t a plumber, has tax problems, is dreaming if he thinks he will have a $250K business, etc. So what?
Joe the plumber has said the emperor has no clothes and now the royal harpies are descending on him like flying monkeys.
Joe the V-P candidate says he hangs out at Home Depot and eats at Katie’s Diner which closed a generation ago. He spins a line about being authentic while saying the word “jobs” as three letters: J-o-b-s. Count them: three. Right?
Joe the plumber just talked some straight talk and reached much of America. Now the MSM are “vetting” him and trying to show him up as some sort of phony. Phony what? A guy who goes by a name other than his first name is a phony? A guy who owes back taxes is a phony? A guy who works a trade while missing some certification is a phony?
A phony is a guy running for President who writes his own biography and denies access to his past. A phony is a guy running for V-P who lies about little stuff and blusters over stupid stuff.
Joe the plumber has stuck a pin in the Obama-Biden hot air balloon. Hopefully, they will have a soft landing near a Home Depot where Joe the V-P can take a course on using Duct Tape.
#4: LifeTrek said,
That’s sometimes true. At least as often their vote is meant to flatter themselves.
I direct your attention to this video, not only is the MSM going after this man, Obama himself is ridiculing him at a rally. This video nicely juxtaposes the actual question and Obama rant today. Incredible. This will not win the annointed one any votes, he’s making bigger and bigger mistakes every day as the pressure mounts. http://perfunction.typepad.com/perfunction/2008/10/video-obama-mocks-joe-the-plumber-crowd-laughs.html
They started that a long time ago. Sometimes its known as “the Keith Olberman Show” other people call it “Air America”, “the Daily Kos” or “The View”. But it expanded from 2 minutes to 24/7 long ago.
Does anyone remember how Miss Andrew reacted when Liberals were attacking his HIV status or posting his advertisements for bareback sex online? I seem to recall him being rather outraged at the politics of personal destruction.
And yet look at him now — leading the attack on teenage girls, handicapped toddlers and average citizens with valid questions.
What ugly things liberalism does to a person.
I LOVE IT-Joe the Plumber Derrangement Syndrome-JTPDS! This is potentially the tipping point towords Sen. McCain. So, since the quesitoner is not perfect himself, lets just get him! And ANYONE who dares to question The One. Hey, let us not forget The One’s ANSWER to Joe’s question. That is why the DDBMSOWM* are going after Joe. Because their guy actually, once again, answered a question with candor and, well it is not the kind of answer that usually gets a lot of votes. Especially when it sounds rather socialist.
*Dinosaur, Drive-By, Mainstream, Obama-Worshiping Media.
I know what you mean and go through when you don’t conform to gay societies prejudices. I’m conservative and proud of it. I cherish an individuals freedom and do not believe rights are given to me by the government, after all what is given can be taken away. I have many liberal Democratic friends that value my opinion and jokingly I’m usually introduced as the Republican. For some it becomes an instant debate, that I can easily argue my points. However, it does become tiring as I’m sure joe the plumber or as a device joe/jane the average citizen.
What the joe incident establishes is that even an average voter that has a question be it from personal experience or a hypothetical
and you get a candid answer the focus will not be on the candidate, but on you. The media has/had lost all objectivity. Why do we see constant crictism of Fox because they have different stories and view points than the herd of 5. I see Sullivan pretending to look rational and intellectual. He has to play to his liberal friends or he will face their wrath that is why he attacks anything Republican, McCain or questions the one. It is that reason he does not look to Obama’s socialism answer, but attack the questioner. I think he forgets it is the candidate we want to know and not the voter’ back ground. Sorry for the two parts iPhone problem.
John, great illustration of the Liberal mind – now the messiah himself is attacking average Joe Plumber.
Dan or Bruce, could you get this link up on your main page? Since many people don’t read the comments.
I thought for sure i would read a more intelligent conversation here i was wrong.
has any one of you actually ever OWNED a small business???
if you have then you would know that GROSS REVENUE is different from GROSS ADJUSTED PROFIT or INCOME.
joe is your typical uninformed politically predjudiced voter with out even comparing the actual tax palns he runs out to CONFRONT obama, he was already a decided voter.
he makes 40k a yr and the 250 to 280k a yr plumbing business is GROSS REVENUE he even admitted on TV that he was WRONG about obamas tax plan and that he would not fall into the higher tax brackets.
so obviously he is a man who sought out a confrontation and has been OUTED for being the ignorant uninformed lackwit bully he actually is.
he is also the mystery of america a man who through sheer bull headed stubborness will vote AGAINST his own economic interests because he just doesnt have the brains to understand taxes or how business law actually works.
schedule c filing re deductions etc etc etc
he is against social security and thinks that obamas comment of spread the wealth is socialist.
just how is obama spreading the wealth????
by giving SMALL business owners a TAX BREAK and rescinding the capitol GAINS TAX on purchase of small business and including a heath insurance TAX CREDIT.
he grows the small business sector THATS HOW HE SPREADS THE WEALTH.
you cant tax a middle class if there IS NO MIDDLE CLASS because everything has been off shored to china and india.
whats left ???fast food and carwashes and crappy cubical jobs.
One has to wonder how judegalan’s grasp of economics compares with his grasp of grammar and punctuation.
Why do liberals ALWAYS CAPITALIZE EVERYTHING? Its not enough to be miserable angry SODS IN PUBLIC, THEY HAVE TO BE OUTRAGED WHEN THEY TYPE TOO!
Judegalan,
1. Joe didn’t seek Obama out. He was in his front yard and Obama came up to him.
2. He doesn’t have a plumbing business, so I don’t know where you’re getting figures about how much his plumbing business makes. He said he wants to buy a plumbing business in the future.
3. Obama is “spreading the wealth” by taking wealth from people who produce and sending money to people who dont produce and dont pay any income tax. AKA welfare.
4. Voting Democrat is never in anyone’s economic self interests. It is not in anyone’s interest to stifle economic growth with more taxation and regulation, and it certainly isn’t in anyone’s economic interest to become dependent on the government — which is, after all, what Democrats are all about.
5. Jobs are “off-shored” precisely because Democrats like Obama raise taxes and regulations on the companies that provide those jobs making it next to impossible for them to compete.
I found your website today. And you brought me to tears. I am just an ordinary American who wants to see our American ideals thrive. I was so inspired by your efforts and struggles to do the same. God bless you richly! And may God spare our land.
Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher (not Wurzelburger, as McCain referred to him during the debate) is a fraud. Why does it matter? Because McCain effectively made him the centerpiece of his economic plan. Otherwise I wouldn’t care that he was claiming he would be able to buy a $500K business on a $40K income and no license. Sullivan put it best: “Why am I not surprised? No license and a lien for unpaid taxes. Like Sarah Palin, a great concept. But the McCain campaign needs to be able to vet its hood ornaments.”
Don’t forget also he was on welfare TWICE and is now bemoaning socialism yet takes a handout for his taxes and license from a radio station. Oh yes, like a typical conservative, complete hypocrisy.