Night before 2008 election - Mother gets a call from Joe the Plumber and other interesting South Carolina happenings
I am so glad this is almost over. And I will be ecstatic if and when Obama wins. My fingers are crossed and I won't be in the mood to celebrate until he hits that magic 270 number.
My mother on the other hand, is mildly pissed. She got her first robocall today.
Some recording from "Joe the Plumber" (though not the original Joe the Plumber but one from Rock Hill - ugh I feel like I'm talking about that 80's rap singer - Roxanne Shante, not the real Roxanne but the Real Real Roxanne) called to say that Obama will raise taxes.
It's not the fact that she got a call that bothers me more than the way she said "Joe the Plumber."
Between you and me, I am glad that it was a recording and not a real person. If it were, I would be bailing mother out of jail for yanking someone through the phone.
And there have been other "interesting" incidents which lead me to believe that the Republican party is a bit more worried about South Carolina than they let on.
For the past few weeks, I have heard ads on black Gospel radio stations from Senators Lindsey Graham and Representative Joe Wilson encouraging black voters to "split the ticket."
I believe one of the phrases were "no matter who you vote for as president . . ."
Keep in mind this was going on at the same time that Graham had been campaigning for McCain.
Robocalls and ads encouraging voters to split their ticket and not vote all Democratic but no words about supporting John McCain; things may get interesting in this state on Wednesday.
Although I won't hold my breath, it is a delicious possibility to consider.
10 comments:
If I get a robocall, whether it is political or otherwise, I just hang-up.
Democrats in Ohio had the state computer records searched fora any dirt on Joe the Plumber and then leaked leaked what it found. Obama walked up in Joe's yard and asked for his support. Joe asked an honest question and got an honest answer. This last weekend a left-wing radio personality called the murder of Joe.....now that is beyond the pale.
Charles, I don't know any story about any scuttlebutt regarding Joe the Plumber. But whatever the case, it wasn't Obama who tried to find info on him.
Now about that honest question, it obviously wasn't an informed honest question and when he received an honest answer, Joe the Plumber ignored it and went around the country making himself a dishonest symbol.
Lastly, I know that the comment about hanging up on robocalls isn't an offhand slap at my mother. We have been cyber friends too long for me to even consider that.
I am totally annoyed by robocalls and cold-calls by people at work and at home. If a presidential candidate ran on the one issue that outlawed such calls, I just might vote for him/her.
No it wasn't Obama who tried to find the dirt on Joe the Plumber. It was Democratic office holders in Ohio. Joe did get Obama to reveal that Obama believes it is the function of government "to spread the wealth around". How is Joe being a "dishonest" symbol?
Because simply Joe had thought that Obama's tax plan would make it difficult for him to start a business. Obama told him and others that this was not the case. In talking to Joe, Obama made one offhand comment about "spreading the wealth." Joe the Plumber pushed aside Obama's answer to his question and worked the angle around the "spread the wealth" comment. It was a totally cheap thing to do.
Now we could discuss the function of government in terms of taxation and "sharing the wealth" but the fact of the matter is that the Republicans and Joe took one portion of a large answer and distorted it.
Alvin, it was John McCain that referred to Joe the Plumber over twenty times in his debate with Obama. Joe's life has been changed by a chance encounter with Obama. Could you please tell me how Obama's response been distorted? My frustration with the taxation issue goes beyond Democrats and Republicans. There is an old saying, no one in government says that a government program doesn't work, they only say that it was underfunded.
Even in Republican South Carolina property taxes on vehicles and real estate is outrageous (thankfully, my car is ten years old), the sales tax is 7% in my county and the maximum state income tax rate is 7%. No country has taxed itself into prosperity.
I am saddened to learn today that Obama's grandmother has died.
And maybe Joe should blame McCain for the intrusion of his life.
To answer your question - under Obama's tax plan, Joe would be able to start a business. How many small business do you know make over $250,000 in REVENUE?
That was Joe's question and Obama answered it.
What the Republicans did is what you are doing - cherry picking the response to make a huge argument that had absolutely NOTHING to do with the question.
Your frustation with taxes really has nothing to do with the exchange between Obama and Joe the Plumber.
Obama will be elected tomorrow. He has my prayers.
Well I hope so. But let us pray regardless. If he wins, he has got a lot of work to do and some nasty opponents who intend to make what they tried to do to bill clinton look like a picnic.
Cherry-picking, I don't think so? But, then that is my opinion and your opinion differs. The difficulties of small business owners can't be understood until you own a small business......just ask George McGovern.
No one in their right mind would want to be president. Being able to handle harsh criticism comes with the job. GWB has been under constant attack since the day he took office in 2001.
Charles, I can tell you exactly how Obama's comment was distorted and if you watch the entire exchange, you can see it too.
Obama was saying that unless average people are doing well, they can't afford to hire Joe (or rather the imaginary Joe who actually IS a plumber and actually can afford to buy a business). His 'spread the wealth around' comment was a direct reference to the fact that unless we stop redistributing all the wealth to the richest 1% and corporations, there is no one left to buy goods and services and we go into a recession.
You can disagree with that theory (although I struggle to understand how) but distorting it into what it has been twisted into is dishonest.
Also Obama didn't walk into Joe's driveway - Joe muscled his way into a group out on the street in front of his house.
I'm an independent, which is why I never buy the spin from anyone. After hearing about Joe, I went and researched for myself and watched the conversation and read the backstory. And I decided to vote for Obama after seeing that he didn't walk away from that exchange but gave direct and honest answers. When I saw what mccain did with that and then how he insulted my intelligence with this 'Joe the Plumber' nonsense, my mind was made up.
The guy is uninformed and it's just an insult to all of us to think we would follow his endorsement. Please!
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