Wurzelbacher a plant? Not possible, says reporter on the scene

On October 12, Barack Obama held a campaign appearance in Toledo, Ohio. On his way to a planned speech, Obama stopped to do a little door-to-door politicking in the suburban Toledo neighborhood where Joe Wurzelbacher lives. Investigating the suspicion by some that Joe Wurzelbacher was a McCain campaign plant, I called reporter Tom Troy of the Toledo Blade. Tom was covering Obama’s visit to Toledo and was on the scene for the meeting between Obama and Wurzelbacher.
According to Troy, the stop location was known only to the Obama campaign and the Secret Service. Troy said, “Nobody in that neighborhood knew Barack Obama was going to be there.” The press was aware that some kind of unscheduled stop was possible but they did not know where or when it would happen. Said Troy, “It’s not possible for him to be a plant. It was totally unplanned.”
Mr. Troy told me that the motorcade stopped so that Obama could talk to voters in an informal manner. According to Troy, the conversation between Obama and Joe occured “right in front of his [Wurzelbacher’s] house.” Troy said that Joe gave credit to Obama for being willing to stop and talk to people.
I hope that clears things up.
Read Tom Troy’s October 12th article.

27 thoughts on “Wurzelbacher a plant? Not possible, says reporter on the scene”

  2. I don’t see the mainstream media focusing on McCain anymore than they are Obama – in fact, I found SEVERAL mainstream press articles devoted to Obama’s possible mishandling of the South Chicago neighborhoods.
    I think the difference is in what we’re paying attention to and what are expectations are – not in what is really going on.

  3. Warren,
    For what its worth, our country has already embraced and put into effect many practices that would be considered socialistic in nature. I don’t know that voting Obama is going to necessarily move us further in that direction. A good way to rally the old Republican and social conservative base though is to point at the non-Republican runner and call him a socialist. Same tactic different election isn’t it?

  4. jayhuck – the mainstream media have that covered. They seem to have no time left over for a review of the Obama career. It is so short, it seems like such an easy job.

  5. Warren,
    I personally wish you’d scrutinize McCain and Gov. Palin as much as you do Obama 🙂

  6. I wish people would scrutinize Obama’s motivations and his record to the degree they have Joe.
    No one knew Obama was coming to the neighborhood. He came to Joe’s house. As the reporter said, the meeting was in Joe’s front yard.
    Joe was thinking in the future – he may be off, he may not ever be able to buy the business but Obama’s answer was the same. If you want the country to lurch toward socialism, then Obama is your guy.

  7. Warren–
    It may be a small point but did Obama come to Joe’s house or to his street. The clips I’ve seen of their discussion seemed to be happening at curbside not on the front stoop.
    I’d be willing to let this go but McCain is on TV in the background still invoking the symbol of “Joe”. When I saw clips that showed the front of Joe’s house, I suspected that his income was at least $100,000 away from the $250,000 tax threshhold. LOL. One source reports that his actual income is $40,000. Only $210,000 away from being a victim of Obama’s tax plan.
    I think we may have been hasty in trying to figure out why Joe spoke out as he did. I’m willing to concede that he wasn’t a ‘plant’ but what now appears likely is that perhaps he was ‘sucking up’ to the parts of his family that do have money. Perhaps hoping for a loan to acquire that business. Of course, that’s just speculation. There’s just something seriously wrong with the picture. Joe’s issues that he presented to Senator Obama were clearly not real and vital issues to his own life.
    To those who ask why we’re making such a big deal out of finding out the truth about Joe, I’d suggest that it wouldn’t have happened if both Joe and the Republican Party didn’t try to make him a symbol of something that he isn’t. The Republicans have made Joe a part of their campaign, a part of their rhetoric. They hope we’ll only hear ‘Joe the Plumber’ and only see a simple, honest, hard-working aspirant to the American Dream; I think it’s fair to question and explore that symbol for the truthfulness of its symbolic value.

  10. Just as a side-note, I’m starting to think America should just switch to the flax tax model, and be done with it.
    We have this insanely complicated tax model, which in theory should tax individuals progressively. We hear the incessant cries of socialism from the right. But what is the reality?
    Top 20% (wealthiest Americans): pay 19% of income in taxes.
    Bottom 20% (poorest Americans): pay 18% of income in taxes.
    http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2003_01/000202.php
    Let’s just end this farce, this silly charade. Our supposedly “progressive” tax system isn’t taxing progressively. Just have a single, flat tax across the entire country. Or if necessary, have just two rates: greater than X and less than X, and be done with it.

  11. As Legolas noted above – and as Joe himself admitted in an interview – Joe would actually receive a tax cut under the Obama plan.
    A summary of the two plans from the Tax Policy Center:
    Compared to current law, TPC estimates the Obama plan would cut taxes by $2.9 trillion from 2009-2018. McCain would reduce taxes by nearly $4.2 trillion. Obama would give larger tax cuts to low- and moderate-income households and pay some of the cost by raising taxes on high-income taxpayers. In contrast, McCain would cut taxes across the board and give the biggest cuts to the highest-income households.
    Tax breaks for the wealthy; a panoply of neocons to guide our foreign policy; trillion-dollar deficits as far as the eye can see. What’s NOT to love about a McCain presidency?

  13. Oh, POOR JOE THE PLUMBER! He walks up and says, “I’m thinking of buying a business that earns $250,000 to $280,000 a year.” A business like that will typically sell for MILLIONS. It will NOT sell for a price that Joe could afford. Even with spotless credit, which he OBVIOUSLY doesn’t have, it would be next to impossible for him to get a loan to buy this business. So, out of the blue, he walks up and LIES about buying a business. This lie gets repeated at the debate by the GOP presidential pick.
    I’m not calling this a conspiracy. But, if you’re gonna try to stick it to your opponent on national television, you can do a better than this! This is cheesy…

  14. If you people believe that Joe was a plant, or that he was trying to set Obama up, it explains why you would believe what Obama tells you.
    Thank you. I have been asking myself why any one would vote for Obama. Now I know.
    If Obama can be set up so easily, how will he do when he sits down at a table with our enemies?

  15. He came out of his house and asked a question. Interesting to see what will happen if he is elected. Anyone makes him look bad, even if it is Obama’s fault, will be dealt with severely. Can you say loss of the 1st amendment. Quickly followed by loss of the 2nd amendment.
    Open your eyes people. You are being brainwashed by his lies because you want to believe him. Why would you think he would cut your taxes when he has never once voted to cut taxes. He is lying to you.
    Don’t you remember the Senior High School President that promised he would fight for no homework? He won but on a promise he couldn’t possible fulfill!

  16. Blaming Joe is like a kid getting caught cheating and blaming the kid next to him for having the right answer on his paper.

  17. How does anything about Joe change the words that came straight from Obama’s mouth?
    This was said without a teleprompter and someone whispering in his ear what to say. Very scary.
    What will he say to leaders of other countries when not controlled by whoever is controlling him? Can you say WWIII?
    Not only is he not qualified and not experienced , but the only thing he has been successful at in his life is hiding his past!

  18. Ann

    Joe made Barak look like he was out of touch with working class America.

    You have to be right and the left’s response has been scary.
    Eddy

    Where did you get the idea that the left hates Joe the Plumber?

    Take a trip over to Democratic Underground and read the threads. The left hates Joe the Plumber. Somebody even did opposition research on his tax records? Holy freakin’ cow. Remind me not to ask Obama a tough question on camera.

  19. Typical stuff.
    Rather than deal with the statement made by Obama, let us attack the qualifications of Joe the Plumber! Who cares who Joe the Plumber is? What if he was not real, would that have changed the answer of Obama?
    Why is it when a person is guilty they blame the guy the caught them.
    “You never would have found out about Monica Lewinski if Kenneth Starr had not been invesitgating me.”
    What is this kindergarten?
    Man up, admit you are a socialist party and let the people decide!
    Mark

  20. I’m pretty sure most of the hub-bub over Joe has very little to do with Joe himself.
    I don’t buy the conspiracy theories, but the conspiracy theories have been talked up because at this point it’s a perfectly plausible premise given the McCain campaign’s sleazy track-record.
    As for the rest, I think it’s really about the fact that, once again, McCain didn’t check his facts before associating his campaign with an unknown. He made “Joe the Plumber” one of the symbolic pillars of his final debate arguments by focusing on how Obama’s plan would harm Joe, but it turns out Joe might benefit more under Obama even if he does buy the business and through some miracle eventually reach $250k in profits.

  21. Drowssap- Where did you get the idea that the left hates Joe the Plumber? Once McCain brought him into the debate, Obama was happy to continue using the image. The only issue is that McCain thought he had a trophy…a campaign buzz-word or image that he could exploit for the next three weeks…and it soured very, very quickly. I love the image…the real one…someone who owes nearly $2000 in back taxes but is thinking seriously about ‘buying a business’–with the government’s help, I’m sure.
    They diminish Obama’s message of ‘spreading the wealth around’…because they really only believe in ‘spreading the wealth’ to ‘our people’. They jumped on the image prematurely–before they fully realized it was tarnished and, I believe,…well, really, I hope, that this tarnished image will reveal the hypocrisy behind their message. I WANT the republicans to continue trying to diminish the ‘spreading the wealth’ message–we used to call that sharing, caring for my brother–but now they’re acting like that’s detestable…like that’s a sin. The Republicans do NOT own the Christian message and this may be the final strike that wakes Christians up to how non-Christian the Republican message really is.
    Republicans are a political movement that once had strong roots in Christian values. They survive, in part, because many Christians haven’t really looked closely at how far they’ve strayed from those Christian values. .Neither party has the right to claim the ‘conservative Christian’ vote …they both bring enough sins to the table that are seriously off-putting. A serious, concerned Christian voter should not accept the tired notion that ‘the Republican way is God’s way’; they should instead praverfully consider their decision…they should take Joe’s advice and examine the issues for themselves. I hope they’ll weigh the facts against the rhetoric and make a very clear statement in the coming election that neither party owns Christianity or the Christian vote. (While I try not to have a ‘sin-meter’ mentality…I do admit that self-righteous prigs really get my goat. That might not be the worst sin but I can guarantee you that it WILL draw my fire and ire.)
    LOL. I’m looking for this election to expose right-wing hypocrisy., the non-Christian values that are trying to wrap themselves in a ‘Christian’ shroud. A few years back, I was for Gore/Lieberman primarily because I wanted to see how they’d handle swearing in a Jewish man on a Christian bible…would we flex? if we did, would we cover up the flex so that no one would notice? No wonder I’ve never been picked to be part of a focus group or poll. I’d surely skewer the results big time! Anyway, I’ve been thinking it’s high time that the non-Christian side of the Republican party comes to light…so that the Christian masquerade can be seen and reckoned with. Yes, Virginia, you can be a Christian and vote Democratic…or even Libertarian.
    Value-wise, I’m ultra-conservative. The thought of ending a life through abortion makes me nauseous but the thought of ending lives through war produces the same effect. Pick your values. Weigh your values. Decide your vote only after you’ve successfully picked and weighed.
    CARVE: Christian Against Republican Value Erosion!
    Ann:
    I didn’t mean to check in. Still got the leaves on my mind but took a karaoke detour tonight…I’ll still be in the park before noon!
    LOL. Isn’t it funny after all this time to discover that I’m likely a raving Democrat–or worse? Hope that won’t impede our friendship. And knowing you as I do from the blog, I’m sure it won’t.

  23. And a gorgeous ‘peak’ weekend ahead…autumn leaves at their prime and temps in the 60’s. It doesn’t get any better than this. I might not even watch the Sunday morning political shows. .
    Eddy,
    No, it doesn’t get any better than that – enjoy your weekend – all the political spin will be there Monday morning and that is time enough. When it gets to the point that it has with Joe the plumber, you know it is time to enjoy the autumn leaves 🙂

  24. I have been busy and I didn’t hear about Joe The Plumber until 2 days after he became world famous.
    I can’t for the life of me understand why the Libs hate Joe so much.
    GEEZ! The guy asked a question and got an answer. Big deal.
    This proves that either
    A) The left has finally gone crazy
    B) The left has finally gone Fascist
    C) ?
    I’m scratching my head on this one.

  25. BTW, Joe Wurzelbacher is one outspoken plumber! They should make him the next Schwarzennegger.:)

  26. If the reporter is right about Obama’s unplanned stop, then Joe Wurzelbacher is just an eager activist Republicans were lucky to have in that area. But it doesn’t really matter in the last analysis. It’s good that Obama was challenged to explain his fiscal policy to someone from the crowd. The media twisted the whole thing according to its bias. It was exaggerated to say that his “spread the wealth” stance is socialist. It’s a progressive taxation scheme, a policy usually supported by modern social democrats. It chimes in with Obama’s “empower the grassroots” campaign concept.
    The more Republican supporters make use of the Joe the Plumber argument, the more their opponents suspect foul play. The media are jumping with joy to exploit the subject either way.

  27. Still unfolding…the mystery of Joe.
    I was glad for the much needed comic relief provided by both candidates at last night’s roast. What a refreshing change from the usual campaign seediness. I saw it on the TV but I’m sure the internet savvy among us will be able to find it on the web.
    And a gorgeous ‘peak’ weekend ahead…autumn leaves at their prime and temps in the 60’s. It doesn’t get any better than this. I might not even watch the Sunday morning political shows. .

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