Wurzelbacher Doppelganger? or Who Is The Real “Joe the Plumber?”

Could this man be related to Charles Keating?

John McCain may want to start vetting some of these people he’s supporting.  If the following allegations are true, McCain may have even more to answer for.

As indicated in my last blog, the star of last night’s debate was Joe Wurzelbacher or “Joe the plumber” as McCain and Obama both called him.  This folksy moniker was mentioned around 25 times by both McCain and Obama.

My impression last night was that Joe Wurzelbacher was one of those independent voters who was teetering on the $250,000 mark, while McCain and Obama were debating on whether this man’s taxes would go up, down, or stay the same.

I’m impressed that McCain would bring up this random person from Ohio at last night’s debate.  Just how random was McCain and Obama’s reference to Joe the plumber?

From the New York Times:

CREDIT MARKETS; Keating Aide in Guilty Plea

Published: December 10, 1991

The highest associate of Charles H. Keating Jr. to turn state’s evidence against the former owner of the Lincoln Savings and Loan Association pleaded guilty today to bank fraud and agreed to cooperate with Federal investigators.

Bruce Fairchild Dickson, 38 years old, a former Lincoln president and senior vice president of Lincoln’s parent company, the American Continental Corporation, entered the plea before Federal District Judge Manuel Real.

The single bank fraud count carries a maximum five-year prison sentence and $250,000 fine. The judge agreed to delay sentencing until June 1 after Michael Lightfoot, a defense lawyer, and David Sklansky, an assistant United States attorney, said Mr. Dickson was cooperating with prosecutors.

Mr. Lightfoot would not discuss the case with reporters.

Mr. Dickson was the fifth former associate to agree to testify against Mr. Keating. Mr. Dickson was convicted last week in a California court on 17 of 18 counts of securities fraud and faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Mr. Dickson was a close aide to Mr. Keating and worked with Mr. Keating’s son-in-law, Robert Wurzelbacher, a senior vice president of American Continental.

There is a flurry of blogs and articles floating around right now alleging that Joe Wurzelbacher may be a close relative to Robert Wurzelbacher.  According to various articles buzzing right now, McCain campaign strategist and advisor Steve Schmidt allegedly tried to warn McCain before the debate:

If Steve Schmidt had any hair left, I hear he would have been pulling it out tonight. He reportedly screamed at John’s debate prep team tonight (out of earshot of reporters, of course). “You idiots – he’s related to Charles Keating… of the Keating Five scandal!”

After seeing footage of Joe Wurzelbacher, I could pretty much sum up that this guy is not an undecided voter.  There is no problem with that in and of itself, but the impression that I got last night from the candidates was that of an undecided voter named “Joe the plumber” who was scrutinizing the two candidates’ tax plans.  Again, that’s not Joe’s fault.  It was the impression that McCain gave of this guy from Ohio.

The burning question now is, “Is he, or isn’t he?”  Is he related to the Keatings, or could it be a “Wurzelbacher doppelganger?”  Could this Joe be related to Charles Keating’s son-in-law, or is it a different Joe?  If he was a plant by the McCain camp, there could be repercussions.

I have a feeling that the media will dig into this, and see if this “average-Joe” is at all as average as McCain claims.  If he is indeed a Keating relative, I think both McCain and “Joe the plumber” will have some explaining to do.  Since there is so much conflict in the blogosphere  on this man’s relations, I will update as this story unfolds.

Now doggone it, say it ain’t so Joe.

Update:  Keith Olberman on “Countdown” set the record straight and confirmed that “Joe the plumber” Wurzelbacher is not a relation to Robert Wurzelbacher, son-in-law to Charles Keating.  BJD, you can rest easy now.

I couldn’t help doing this one.  How many times can you use “Wurzelbacher Doppelganger” in a title?

God, I love a good hoax!

The Final Obama/McCain Debate or Debate 3.0

Obama and McCain um . . . after the debate . . . Is McCain having a "senior-moment?"

To use an achingly melodramatic term, the third and final Obama/McCain debate belongs to the ages.

Cliche aside, I believe that the real winner of this debate was moderator and CBS reporter Bob Schieffer.  Of this battle royale trifecta, Schieffer was the only moderator to get these two candidates to address each other, and had the guts to bring up the nasty subject of over-the-top mudslinging that has been plaguing the election for the last few weeks.

McCain seemed to stick to the story that if Obama had agreed to do town hall meetings with him, the election just wouldn’t have taken this nasty turn:

“Had Sen. Obama responded to my urgent requests to sit down and do town hall meetings, we could have done at least ten of them by now… I think the tone of this campaign could have been different.”

I’m afraid I’m not quite following that logic.  To me, that smacks of the abusive husband projecting the blame to the wife for the abuse that she just received.

I just want to make sure that I get this straight-If Obama had agreed to town hall meetings, McCain and Palin wouldn’t have made that association between Obama and terrorism, and incite angry crowds to shout “Traitor!,” “Terrorist,” and “Kill him!”  Yeah McCain.  All of that was entirely Obama’s doing.  Whatever helps you sleep at night. 

To be certain, Obama did call McCain’s campaign erratic.  Let’s say that Obama was referring to McCain’s age when this was brought up.  The fact is, columnists George Will and Sam Donaldson discussed that very issue on “This Week with George Stephanoupolos.”  Also, I believe that it’s fair to say that “erratic” does not nearly equal “paling around with terrorists.”  I don’t think it’s fair to compare the two.

When McCain was asked to say what he regrets, he only cited something that Obama’s surrogate, Rep. John Lewis stated.  McCain said;

“I regret some of the negative aspects of some of these campaign. The fact is, it has taken many turns that I think have been disrespectful… Congressman Lewis, made allegations that Sen Palin and I were somehow associated with one of the worst chapters in American history.”

The fact is, Lewis did not say McCain and Palin were “associated” with the “worst chapter in American history.”  He was pointing out that Sen. McCain and Gov. Palin are sowing the seeds of hatred and division, and there is no need for this hostility in our political discourse.

McCain asserted tonight that Obama never repudiated Lewis’ remark comparing McCain and Palin with George Wallace.  The following was a statement from the Obama campaign shortly after Lewis’ statement that seems to contradict McCain’s claim:

“Senator Obama does not believe that John McCain or his policy criticism is in any way comparable to George Wallace or his segregationist policies. But John Lewis was right to condemn some of the hateful rhetoric that John McCain himself personally rebuked just last night, as well as the baseless and profoundly irresponsible charges from his own running mate that the Democratic nominee for President of the United States ‘pals around with terrorists.’ As Barack Obama has said himself, the last thing we need from either party is the kind of angry, divisive rhetoric that tears us apart at a time of crisis when we desperately need to come together. That is the kind of campaign Senator Obama will continue to run in the weeks ahead.”

On the actual subject of William Ayers, the 1960s radical turned professor, McCain said he did not care about “an old washed-up terrorist” like Ayers, once a bomb-throwing militant in the Weather Underground group who is now a Chicago professor of education.

However, McCain must care just a little bit about that “old washed-up terrorist.”  Otherwise, he would have left it at that instead of immediately following it up with this statement:

“But as Senator (Hillary) Clinton said in her debates with you, we need to know the full extent of the relationship with you.”

You can’t have it both ways McCain.  Either you care about this guy Ayers, or you don’t.  What a weak way to make an allegation like that to someone’s face.  Obama once again, had to explain the loose relationship with Ayers as well as the liberal group, ACORN for those in the American electorate who didn’t quite get it the first fifty times he addressed it.

McCain actually did better in this debate than in the previous two.  Not only did he look Obama in the face as he spoke this time, but the setup of this debate prevented the 72 year old Senator from wandering to the outer reaches of the stage.  The zinger of the night does go to the Arizona Senator:

“Senator Obama, I am not President Bush. If you wanted to run against President Bush, you should have run four years ago,”

Kudos to Senator McCain.  I’m sure that the comment you made would have been the one that the pundits would remember had it not been for your cavalier remark regarding abortion when the mother’s health is at risk.

McCain sarcastically paid tribute to “the eloquence of Senator Obama. He’s for health for the mother. You know, that’s been stretched by the pro-abortion movement in America to mean almost anything.”

For many women out there who have had or might experience complications from pregnancy and the OBGYNs who treat them, I’m sure that McCain’s comment went over wonderfully.  Poor McCain.  You had me, then you lost me.  I believe that McCain on women’s health issues will be a dominating force for political pundits everywhere tomorrow morning.

Megan Carpentier of womens’ issues blog “Jezebel” wrote the following:

“It used to be that McCain was leading the charge to reform the Republican platform to include exceptions for the life and health of the mother to their anti-abortion plank. That tonight he declared his own position extreme — let alone called a woman that chooses her own continued existence over the potential future life of a fetus “extreme” — is a pretty significant and rather disgusting charge.”

Here’s the video.  Notice McCain’s sneering “air-quotes:”

On the subject of the economy, the clear winner was neither Mccain nor Obama, but “Joe the plumber,” or Toledo resident Joe Wurzelbacher.  Both McCain and Obama almost couldn’t stop talking about him:

“Joe wants to buy the business that he’s been in for all these years,” McCain said. “Worked 10, 12 hours a day. And he wanted to buy the business, but he looked at your tax plan and he saw that he was going to pay much higher taxes.”

Obama countered, citing his own recollections with the now famous plumber:

“What I essentially said to him was, five years ago, when you were in the position to buy your business, you needed a tax cut then.

“And what I want to do is to make sure that the plumber, the nurse, the firefighter, the teacher, the young entrepreneur who doesn’t yet have money, I want to give them a tax break now.”

On other points of the economy, both stayed on message.  Perhaps more so for McCain.  He was using selections from “John McCain’s Greatest Hits From The Convention.”  Yes, we heard such classics as:

“We’re going to stop giving 700 billion dollars to countries that don’t like us very much”

And

“I’ve been fighting since I was 17 years old, and I have the scars to prove it.”

I think I have an idea on how John McCain can update his campaign-come up with more new material.

The Third Debate Was Recorded

The third and final debate of this Presidential election seems to have been recorded.  The following is footage from the debate:

.

Many thanks to Marc Ambinder of “The Atlantic” for jokingly pulling my leg with his headline, and providing this wonderful footage.

So now we know where John McCain got his strategy.  Stay tuned to see if McCain uses “The Penguin” strategy when he takes the stage to whip a black man.

Okay.  The actual quote is that he’ll “‘whip‘ Obama’s “you-know-what.”  So much for spin.

How Did This Fly Under My Radar?

I am loving all of the digital advertising over at McCain central.  First, John McCain wins debate the morning before the first Presidential debate, and now this gem:

Many thanks to the online publication, “Wonkette” for bringing this to light.  In my 40 years of living on this earth, this has got to be the weirdest campaign I’ve ever seen.

VP Debate: No Clear Winners

I don’t believe that I was as “mesmerized” by Palin’s performance last night as Rich Lowry or at least, she didn’t “excite my base in the sub-prime area.”

To be honest, I thought that last night would be a mis-match.  It reminded me of when I would watch a fighting match, thinking that the one fighter would just clean the floor with the other guy, only to find the “underdog” holding his own and making it to the final rounds losing only by a “TKO.”

I can’t speak for all of the swing-voters in the battleground states, but I can offer my own insight as to how last night’s debate between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin went.

The fact is, Palin did better than I expected.

Sadly, that’s not saying too much.  What I’m actually saying is that her talking points during the debate were generally cohesive, and she didn’t make any unbelievably stupid gaffes with the possible exception of mispronouncing our Commander in Afghanistan.

Palin did go to the final rounds, and the debate in my opinion, had no knock-out by either side.

So who won the debate?  It depends on who you ask.

Personally, I give it to Biden by a “TKO.”  Biden looked far more Vice-Presidential, going over the facts that he had gained in his decades in the Senate.  He attacked John McCain’s record, and backed it up with facts:

“Look, past is prologue,” said Biden as he countered Palin’s remarks that he keeps looking to the past.  “The issue is, how different is John McCain’s policy going to be than George Bush’s? I haven’t heard anything yet. I haven’t heard how his policy is going to be different on Iran than George Bush’s. I haven’t heard how his policy is going to be different with Israel than George Bush’s. I haven’t heard how his policy in Afghanistan is going to be different than George Bush’s. I haven’t heard how his policy in Pakistan is going to be different than George Bush’s,”

Palin countered by repeatedly going back to energy and accused Obama of voting for a bill that gave big tax breaks for big oil companies:

“In Alaska I had to take on those oil companies,” she says. “I had to break up a monopoly and say the people had to come first.”

The problem with Palin was that while Biden could come up with a good answer for every single question, Palin sounded as though she was regurgitating all of those talking points that were fed to her by her debate coaches.  I will concede that she seemed to be more cohesive than in those interviews with Gibson and Couric.  I will say that she memorized most of her talking points fairly well.  At times however, she refused to answer a question, but would revert to something that she somewhat knew.  At one point, she flat out told Biden and moderator Gwen Ifill in her own “Fargo” way, that she’d darn well only answer the questions she wanted and was going to ignore them and talk to the American people about the topics she came to talk about.  Congratulations Ms. Palin.  I see you’ve graduated from the “Dick Cheney School of Vice Presidentin’.”  A hint to Ms. Palin: There is a reason debates have moderators.

My greatest difficulty with the debate was when Sarah Palin was seemingly in agreement with Dick Cheney:

“Well, our founding fathers were very wise there in allowing through the Constitution much flexibility there in the office of the vice president. And we will do what is best for the American people in tapping into that position and ushering in an agenda that is supportive and cooperative with the president’s agenda in that position. Yeah, so I do agree with him that we have a lot of flexibility in there, and we’ll do what we have to do to administer very appropriately the plans that are needed for this nation.”

Dick Cheney went down that road, and we see where it got us.  Joe Biden was only too happy to counter an admirer of Dick Cheney’s policies:

“Vice President Cheney has been the most dangerous vice president we’ve had probably in American history. The idea he doesn’t realize that Article I of the Constitution defines the role of the vice president of the United States, that’s the Executive Branch. He works in the Executive Branch. He should understand that. Everyone should understand that.

And the primary role of the vice president of the United States of America is to support the president of the United States of America, give that president his or her best judgment when sought, and as vice president, to preside over the Senate, only in a time when in fact there’s a tie vote. The Constitution is explicit.

The only authority the vice president has from the legislative standpoint is the vote, only when there is a tie vote. He has no authority relative to the Congress. The idea he’s part of the Legislative Branch is a bizarre notion invented by Cheney to aggrandize the power of a unitary executive and look where it has gotten us. It has been very dangerous.“

My thanks to Joe Biden for at least keeping his ambitions in check.  Of all of the remarks in both the Presidential and Vice-Presidential debates, I’d have to say that this was the most dangerous remark that I’ve heard.  It is certainly one to keep in mind as election day approaches.

Biden’s moment in the debate was when he was visibly overcome with emotion when he rebutted the idea that “just because I am a man” he didn’t understand what it was like to wonder whether or not a child would “make it” in recovering from a life-threatening medical situation. At the time, he was likely recalling the tragic automobile accident that killed his wife and daughter and severely injured his two sons.  I looked at it again, and knew that this was genuine.  It was not some sort of contrived stunt.  Anyone who knows Biden though, knows that he wears his heart on his sleeve.

Palin’s moment in this debate was a bit less authentic.  She answers Biden’s connection of McCain’s policies to George W. Bush:

“Oh say it ain’t so Joe.  There you go again, pointing backwards again.  I know you prefaced your whole comment with the Bush Administration.  Now doggone it, let’s look ahead and tell the Americans what we have to plan to do for them in the future.”

Why did it sound as though she stole not only from Ronald Reagan, but the movie “Fargo?  Yah!  You betcha!

I noticed a few of those moments from Palin throughout the debate.  While Biden was playing it straight, Palin was hamming it up with the “folksy” style, winking at various people, and giving “shout-outs” to teachers in her family and some middle-school class.  Really?  In the middle of a Vice-Presidential debate?  I didn’t see it as cute or endearing.  I saw it as contrived and rehearsed.  Quite frankly, it was beginning to get annoying.

Confidential to Ms. Palin: The top American Commander in Afghanistan is Gen. David McKiernan . . . McKiernan, not McClellan for whom the Army base down the road from where I live is named.  I suppose it’s a little too late to clear that one up for you.

After seeing the debate, I watched the spin-people work their magic.

From CNN:

And from FoxNews.  Notice that the sponsor is Budweiser.  Hey, doesn’t Cindy McCain’s company distribute that brand?  Probably just a coincidence:

After all of that spinning from the cable news spindoctors, I need a rest.  Bleh!

Ms. Palin’s Favorite Magazines? “Um All of Them”

In her famous (or infamous?) interview with Couric divided over several segments, Palin had been giving  answers so sad and pathetic, it completely sets the bar at ground level for her when she debates Joe Biden tonight.  At this point as long as she doesn’t drool, throw up, or pee herself, it will be declared by her spin-surgeons as a complete success.  Don’t laugh.  Remember that the first George Bush threw up on the Japanese Prime Minister during a trip to Japan.  It could happen.

Palin was asked by Katie Couric about her choice of reading material.  The question by Couric was simple:

Katie Couric: And when it comes to establishing your worldview, I was curious: what newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this to stay informed and to understand the world?
Sarah Palin: I’ve read most of them, again with a great appreciation for the press, for the media.
KC: But, like, what ones specifically? I’m curious.
SP: Um, all of them, any of ‘em that have been in front of me over all these years.
KC: Can you name a few?
SP: I have a vast variety of sources where we get our news too. Alaska isn’t a foreign country, where, it’s kind of suggested and it seems like, ‘Wow, how could you keep in touch with what the rest of Washington, D.C. may be thinking and doing when you live up there in Alaska?’ Believe me, Alaska is like a microcosm of America.

Now mind you, this was a pretty simple question.  I could have been asked this question as a third grader, and would have instantly spouted off an answer like “Highlights, or “The Weekly Reader.” I had never heard of a publication called “Um All of Them.”   Could this be what she meant?

Humor aside, this is quite serious.  John McCain has been complaining about “gotcha journalism” lately, but this question hardly fits that description.  I’m certain that most Americans can tell you their favorite publications.

For the record, mine are The New Yorker, The Birmingham News, The Onion, Time, and the online Huffington Post.  I have a few more, but those are the ones that I could think of offhand.

I think the answer scared me because it sounded almost verbatim to an answer that a relative of mine would give.  I love this relative dearly, but I also know that this person in question is not at all a reader, and is not very well informed on anything.  I believe that when pressed, this relative of mine would have given an almost identical answer in a sad attempt to sound informed.

Looking at the answer that Palin gave, along with her demeanor suggests that she in fact, does not read at all.

That little revelation does not at all sit well with me.

I am not trying to come off as one of those “elitist, book-learnin’ types.”  The fact is though, that one who is involved in politics, who is aspiring to the second highest office in the land, almost has to read certain publications to keep abreast of what is going on in the world.  To me, this is a given.  If George W. Bush is any indication, aversion to books by members of the Executive Branch is a dangerous thing.  Oh why can’t we as Americans learn from our history so that we’re not doomed to repeat it?

On another note, the Vice-Presidential debate is tonight.  You know I’ll be popping some popcorn for this one.  It seems that another banner has appeared in “The Wall Street Journal:”

I loved this little take-off on the banner that appeared in last week’s “Wall Street Journal”  the morning before the debate between McCain and Obama.

Wow!  A debate tonight that will compare Biden’s stupid gaffes with Palin’s unbelievably stupid gaffes.  Don’t get me wrong.  I believe that Joe Biden is a great Senator and a wonderful Vice-Presidential candidate, but he does often speak before he thinks.

Confidential to Ohio State Buckeyes fans.  Sorry about Joe’s comments.  He’s just a really big fan of the team of his alma-mater, the University of Delaware Blue Hens.

Who’d have thought that someone could come along and make Joe Biden look prudent in his comments?

SNL’s Couric/Palin Interview

Today is Sunday, and I was going to relax all day visiting a few sites, then watch some “Mythbusters” on DVD.  (I am a huge fan)

Instead for your viewing pleasure, (I decided to keep today a little more lighthearted)  I offer last night’s Saturday Night Live opening sketch with Tina Fey of course as Palin, and Amy Poehler as Couric.  This was too good not to post.

Yes, comedians are having fun with her as they did with George W. Bush.  Keep in mind however that if she is elected, we as a nation may be paying dearly for the laughs we get.

I suppose I’m going to have to link it as it is difficult if not impossible to display the video here.  Damn! McCain’s people are good:

SNL Palin-Couric Interview

On the McCain front, we have a video of McCain uttering the word, “horseshit” under his breath during Friday’s Presidential debate in response to Obama asserting that McCain would not meet with the Minister of Spain.  Sorry for the expletive everyone, but it’s his word not mine.

So much for cool and collected.  Will someone please remind him that it is not allowed to utter profanities during a Presidential debate?  God!  This election just keeps getting better and better:

I will now resume my Sunday relaxation already in progress.

Letterman Mocks Part II – Also, McCain Loses Touch With Reality

Last night, Letterman was at it again – and rightly so.

On his late-night talk show, “The Late Show With David Letterman,” the venerable host lambasts McCain for cancelling the night before, mere hours before taping.  During the subsequent interview with fill-in guest Keith Olberman, Letterman learns that McCain was doing an interview with Katie Couric.  Letterman then shows the live feed of McCain having makeup applied for his Couric interview.  Let’s just say that Dave was pissed!

So the following night, Letterman offered a few more scathing remarks toward the Senator who skipped out on him.  Dave laments that he “felt like a ugly date.”

This should serve as a cautionary tale to any future Presidential hopefuls – Don’t “dis” David Letterman. He will use satire to completely humiliate you . . . and his fans – millions of them, will make it a point not to vote for you.

Apologies for the messages inserted in the following clip. This is YouTube after all. I recommend ignoring them.

Watch:

On another note, the Presidential debate starts in ten minutes, and the McCain camp has already declared victory. This victory banner came even before John McCain decided to come out of hiding and join Obama in the debate.  “The Wall Street Journal,” brought this to light:

“Although the fate of tonight’s presidential debate in Mississippi remains very much up in the air, John McCain has apparently already won it — if you believe an Internet ad an astute reader spotted next to this piece in the online edition of the Wall Street Journal this morning.

“McCain Wins Debate!” declares the ad which features a headshot of a smiling McCain with an American flag background. Another ad spotted by our eagle-eyed observer featured a quote from McCain campaign manager Rick Davis declaring: “McCain won the debate– hands down.”

Yes, this is real:

I am astounded!  So McCain wasn’t going to debate and now before it even begins, he wins the debate.  Who is McCain’s speechwriter anyway; Lewis Carroll?  I am now simply saddened and embarrassed for him.

Poor John McCain . . . You hardly knew us.