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McCain’s Plumbing Problems |
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Sen. John McCain tried to make political hay during last night’s presidential debate by repeatedly citing references to “Joe the plumber.”
Instead, McCain’s repeated references to Joe Wurzelbacher (let’s be adults here and call him by his full name, rather than objectify him, shall we?) gave Sen. Barack Obama the opportunity to explain before a prime-time audience of millions how his tax plan would benefit 95 percent of America’s working people.
As Plumbers and Pipe Fitters (UA) Assistant General President Steve Kelly said today:
McCain’s plan gives massive tax giveaways to CEOs and mega-corporations while leaving working families out in the cold. At a time when our economy is bleeding jobs, McCain also opposes investment in infrastructure spending, which would create good jobs and help put our economy back on solid footing.
Wurzelbacher asked Obama about his tax plan while Obama was in Toledo, Ohio, on Sunday, and since then, has been propelled into media stardom by a McCain campaign desperate to distract the public from the fact that McCain’s economic proposals involve:
- Taxing our employer-based health care benefits.
- Giving massive tax cuts to Big Oil—to the tune of $3.8 billion.
- Supporting bad trade deals like the U.S. Colombia Free Trade Agreement.
The UA was the first AFL-CIO union to endorse Obama for president, in part, because Obama has a plan to cut taxes for working people while investing in good jobs and lifting wages. And, unlike McCain, Obama will move the nation beyond the failed policies of the Bush years.
Wurzelbacher, by the way, is a registered Republican who was not an “undecided” voter, as has been reported by the media.
In other words, as Jane Hamsher puts it on Firedoglake, one word sums up the reasons the McCain campaign has trotted around Wurzelbacher: Plant.
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Paid for by the AFL-CIO Committee on Political Education Political Contributions Committee, www.aflcio.org, and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.
5 Comments
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This Joe story has just recently caught my attention. I’m a little behind the curve on it, but I’m trying to catch up. From what I have gathered, and I may be going out on a limb here; I believe Joe pretty well enjoys being objectified.
As I understand, “Joe the plumber” has reservations about Obama’s tax structure because it calls for gradual increases in tax responsibilities of those making $250,000.00 or more annually. Are you kidding me? Perhaps, I should go into the plumbing business. Obviously, Mr. Wurzelbacher isn’t the “average Joe” plumber in terms of taxable income.
Does anyone know how Joe feels about McCain’s proposal to increase taxes? You know…the taxes on heathcare benefits that have never been taxed before.
I understand there is mounting evidence that Joe hasn’t been properly filing his taxes, anyway. Is there any truth to those reports? Also, is it true that he isn’t even licensed to be a plumber?
This story stinks, no pun intended. I am a 32 year member of Local #62, Plumbers and Steamfitters. I smell a rat from a mile away. This guy MUST be non-union. If he is making $250,000 plus a year he not only is ripping off the consumers, but he is vastly underpaying his employees also. Unlicensed plumbers are everywhere. This in itself does not surprise me. This is the way most rat contractors enrich themselves, off the sweat of the workers brow. Now, far be it that I would not support a business owners ability to make a decent living, more power to them. BUT, they damn well better treat employees as more than just another tool in the toolbox.
Over the course of my career, I have heard untold hundreds of stories just like this one. That is why I am a Union man now, and will be until the day I die.
I suspect he was an actor hired by the GOP to represent the ‘Average Joe” and sway people’s opinion right before the election. His comments, especially the ones about investing his social security himself really sounded fishy with the stock market tanking like it is.
The “Joe” episode is a lame attempt by the McBush campaign to identify with working class voters. Although “Joe” is presented as one who speaks truth to power, he is nothing more than a wannabe and tool for the rich.
A man worried about being taxed another 3% on his income over $250,000 is what McCain considers the average Joe. Well what do you expect from a man who does not know how many houses he owns or believes that you are not rich until you make more than $5 million a year. What America does not need is more administration that has no clue who the average American is and how they struggle.
McCain’s poor judgment and thinking goes for the FTA with Colombia as well. Here is a country that has for years lead the world in MURDERS of union members and already in 2008 there are more murders than there were in all of 2007. The FTA is for the rich and government in the country that has one of the most unequal distributions of wealth in the entire world. McCain says how the FTA will help the average Colombians, but just today it was announced that over 20,000 people in Colombia are demonstrating against the free-market economic policies of the government and for that they are being killed by government security forces. One must remember that the majority of murders of union members are attributed to the terrorist drug dealing paramilitary that has been connected to the Colombian government on several levels and there is a less than 3% arrest rate for those murders.
It is time that the USA elects Obama and demonstrates to the world that we will not support the abuse of the worker in our country or any country for the benefit of the few rich. It was not rich with their money manipulative schemes that made America great, but the sweat and toil of the worker that made America great. We do not need more American jobs going to countries who allow excessive abuse of their workers to keep wages low for the greed of the rich.