Joe the Plumber

Vorlage:Pp-semi Vorlage:Infobox Person Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher (born 1973Vorlage:Fact), also known as Joe the Plumber, is an employee of Newell Plumbing & Heating and a resident of Holland, Ohio, USA. He came to media attention during the United States presidential election, 2008 when he was mentioned by Republican Senator John McCain and Democratic Senator Barack Obama at least 23 times during the third and final presidential debate on October 15, 2008.

Encounter with Barack Obama

On October 11, 2008, four days before the final presidential debate, Obama met residents in Wurzelbacher's Ohio neighborhood. Wurzelbacher, who had been playing football with his son in his front yard at the time, asked Obama about his tax plan. As an ABC News camera recorded the conversation, Wurzelbacher said he was upset about his interpretation of Obama's tax plan and suggested that such a plan would be at odds with "the American dream." Wurzelbacher asked Obama, "I’m getting ready to buy a company that makes $250,000 to $280,000 a year. Your new tax plan is going to tax me more, isn’t it?" Wurzelbacher also asked Obama whether he would support a flat tax plan.

Obama responded with an explanation of how his tax plan would affect a small business in this bracket. Obama stated, "If your revenue is above $250[K], then from $250[K] down, your taxes are going to stay the same. It is true that for $250[K] up, …, you'd go from 36% to 39%, which is where it was under Bill Clinton."

Regarding whether he was open to a flat tax Obama said, Vorlage:Cquote

Obama also said, Vorlage:Cquote

The "spread the wealth around" quote was later used by the McCain campaign, comparing Obama’s policies to socialism. Steve Schmidt, McCain's chief campaign strategist, commented that this statement would be a focus of their campaign in its final weeks.

Phone call with John McCain

On October 18, John McCain told a Melbourne, Florida campaign rally that he phoned Wurzelbacher for the first time on October 17. McCain said: Vorlage:Cquote

Media appearances

Wurzelbacher spoke to Katie Couric of CBS Evening News on October 15, shortly after the conclusion of the final debate. Asked whether Obama's proposed $250,000 tax threshold would affect him, Wurzelbacher replied: "Not right now at presently, but, you know, question, so he's going to do that now for people who make $250,000 a year. When's he going to decide that $100,000 is too much, you know? I mean, you're on a slippery slope here. You vote on somebody who decides that $250,000 and you're rich? And $100,000 and you're rich? I mean, where does it end?" He also said, “I asked the question but I still got a tap dance ...almost as good as Sammy Davis, Jr.”

Wurzelbacher held a press conference at his home on the morning of October 16, following the debates, where he refused to express support for either candidate. "I'm not telling anybody anything" about which candidate he prefers, he said, adding, "It's a private booth. I want the American people to vote for who they want to vote for."

On October 16, Wurzelbacher appeared on Your World with Neil Cavuto on Fox News. Cavuto asked if Wurzelbacher was persuaded by Obama's plan. Wurzelbacher said that he was not and that he was more frightened upon hearing it. Wurzelbacher suggested that Obama's plan was socialist in nature.

On October 16, Wurzelbacher also appeared on Good Morning America. Diane Sawyer asked him if he was taking home $250,000 now, Wurzelbacher said with a laugh "No, not even close." Sawyer asked Wurzelbacher, "And the McCain camp, some people have said did they contact you and tell you that you were going to be a major part of this, and had they contacted you before that encounter with Senator Obama?" Wurzelbacher answered, "Oh no, no, no one's contacted me as far as if I was going to be on the debate or as far as my name being used. No. I have been contacted by them and asked to show up at a rally. But, other than that, no. I just happened to be here and Barack Obama happened to show up."

Political leanings and views on taxation

Wurzelbacher registered to vote in 1992. In 2008, he voted in the Republican primary. He told an Associated Press reporter that in the most recent Republican primary, he backed McCain. Wurzelbacher is a registered Republican.

In an October interview, Wurzelbacher said Vorlage:Cquote

There is a judgement lien against Wurzelbacher for non-payment of Ohio income taxes. On October 16, 2008, Barb Loisie, deputy clerk at the Lucas County Court of Common Pleas, told ABC News that "there is a 99 percent chance he doesn't know about the lien."

Plumbing career

Wurzelbacher is one of two employees of a small plumbing firm, Newell Plumbing and Heating Co. of Toledo. This is the company he described to Obama as making more than $250,000 per year. Wurzelbacher said that the idea of buying the company was discussed during his job interview six years prior.

MSNBC reported that "Ohio business records show the company’s estimated total annual revenue as only $100,000. Actual taxable income would be even less than that." According to Bloomberg News, if Wurzelbacher bought the company and it did have the earnings he described, by the time he took proper business deductions he'd be left with between $150,000 and $200,000 in taxable income and wouldn't be affected by Obama's proposed increase in the top rates.

An Associated Press article reported that Wurzelbacher did not have a plumber's license or apprenticeship. Local 50 of the United Association of Plumbers, Steamfitters and Service Mechanics, which endorsed Obama, indicated that Wurzelbacher applied for an apprentice program in 2003 but never completed the work. Wurzelbacher told reporters he did not need a license because he worked under license of Al Newell, the owner of the firm where he works. Newell held licenses with the State of Ohio and City of Toledo.

In his interview on ABC's Good Morning America on October 16, Wurzelbacher said that his two current plumbing jobs were for a gas station and for a shopping center, Levis Commons.

External links

• Full, unedited video of the conversation between Joe the Plumber and Obama
• Full text of the conversation, Jake Tapper, ABC News online, 2008-10-14

Vorlage:Lifetime