Friday, October 17, 2008
What a Surprise...
A working-class Republican who turns out to be a moron.
Are there any other kind?
Are there any other kind?
- Real Deal on ÔJoe the PlumberÕ Reveals New Slant
By Larry Rohter
Joe the Plumber, as he became nationally known when Senator John McCain made him a theme at WednesdayÕs final presidential debate, may work in the plumbing business, but he is not a licensed plumber.
Thomas Joseph, the business manager of Local 50 of the United Association of Plumbers, Steamfitters and Service Mechanics, based in Toledo, said Thursday that Mr. Wurzelbacher had never held a plumberÕs license, which is required in Toledo and several surrounding municipalities. He also never completed an apprenticeship and does not belong to the plumberÕs union, which has endorsed Mr. Obama. On Thursday, he acknowledged that he does plumbing work even though he does not have a license.
And he owes back taxes, too, public records show. The premise of his complaint to Mr. Obama about taxes may also be flawed, according to tax analysts. Contrary to what Mr. Wurzelbacher asserted and Mr. McCain echoed, neither his personal taxes nor those of the business where he works are likely to rise if Mr. ObamaÕs tax plan were to go into effect, they said.
Mr. Wurzelbacher, 34...became the hero of conservatives and Republicans when he stopped Mr. Obama, who was campaigning on his street, and asked whether he believed in the American dream. Mr. Wurzelbacher said he was concerned about having to pay higher taxes as an owner of a small business.
ÒIÕm getting ready to buy a company that makes $250,000 to $280,000 a year,Ó he told Mr. Obama. ÒYour new tax plan is going to tax me more, isnÕt it?Ó
That encounter wound up on YouTube and led to appearances on the Fox News Channel, interviews with conservative bloggers and a New York Post editorial, all of whom seized on a small part of Mr. ObamaÕs long reply. ÒI think that when you spread the wealth around, itÕs good for everybody,Ó Mr. Obama had said.
Mr. Wurzelbacher told reporters that the company he works for, Newell Plumbing & Heating, has two full-time employees: himself and the owner, Al Newell.
Neither Mr. Newell nor Mr. Wurzelbacher responded to telephone calls. And Mr. Wurzelbacher has provided only vague information on his and the companyÕs finances since talking to Mr. Obama. But if the plumbing business remained a two-person company and the net proceeds Ñ after deductions for business expenses Ñ were shared by the two men, both incomes would most likely fall well below the top tax brackets on which Mr. Obama wants to raise rates, as would the company itself.
Both, in fact, would probably be eligible for a tax cut, said Bob Williams, senior research associate at the independent, nonpartisan Tax Policy Center...
According to public records, Mr. Wurzelbacher has been subject to two liens, each over $1,100. One, with a hospital, has been settled, but a tax lien with the State of Ohio is still outstanding.
