Posted on 10/16/2008 6:39:02 PM PDT by beagleone
Joe Keller of Mableton turns a wrench for a living and says theres no more American way to earn a paycheck. The former high school football player lives with his wife and three children, goes to a Baptist church on Sunday and is suddenly enjoying a split-second of serendipitous fame.
Well, enjoying might be too strong a word.
PHOTO: Joe Keller (right) works on a water leak at the Decatur YMCA.
I thought it was pretty funny myself, Keller said of the oft-repeated Joe the Plumber during Wednesday nights presidential debate. Everybodys been calling me.
He employs a staff of nearly 10, and his guys say he ought to strip Joe the Plumber on the side of his work van. While he chuckled during the debate at hearing his name called so many times by both candidates, hes serious about the issues this campaign season.
My business makes more than $250,000 a year, but Im not rich, Keller said. That doesnt mean I should share my wealth.
He was referring to a televised encounter Barack Obama had in Ohio with plumber Joe Wurzelbacher, who asked if hed pay higher taxes if Obama was elected.
My attitude is that if the economys good for folks from the bottom up, its going to be good for everybody, Obama told him. I think when you spread the wealth around, its good for everybody.
Both candidates referenced Joe the Plumber numerous times during the debate, which Keller watched.
If (Obama) wins and puts into effect what he wants to do, theres a very good possibility myself and my employees will be out of a job, said Keller, who was working a job at the Decatur YMCA Thursday afternoon. I cant afford to pay more taxes. In the plumbing industry, right now with the economy the way it is, its been hit really hard. Realistically, a plumbers about the most American profession you can be in. (Obama) comes across a plumber and actually has the nerve to tell him to share the wealth.
Keller was planning to vote anyway, but his inadvertently shared spotlight has given him a new idea. He and his crew will all go to vote together on Election Day.
Master plumber Joe Gibson of Alpharetta is experiencing similar popularity today, although he did not watch the debate.
I work a fair number of hours, he said. I come home, eat, visit with my family and its nap time. It all caught me off guard.
He says energy, conservation of green space and immigration issues are on his mind this election season. Most important is the economy.
Since the housing crunch, builders are going out and doing a lot of these little plumbing issues themselves, he said. Its taken a lot of business away from me.
So his days begin in the dark, when he greets the paper carrier in the driveway, coffee in hand. He follows politics, but his long hours dont leave a lot of time for television.
This is so funny, he said of entry of Joe the Plumber into the nations political lexicon. And hey, if you ever need a plumber
He caught Obama in an unguarded moment, and the usually unflappable, cool facade dropped, and we saw the ugly message of every socialist regime--redistribution of wealth from those who earn it to those who do not, all to accrue political power to themselves.
It is the very definition of tyranny, and America's Founders decided against it over 200 years ago. Their choice was for private enterprise, private property rights, liberty for individuals, and limits on government power.
Joe the Plumber may be the guy that brings down Obama hard. And even better, the media may be the one that helps Joe to do it.
Here is an American homeowner who respects you guys, a lot.
When you really, really need a plumber, there is no one else who can do the job. My plumber has about 6 employees and they have been lifesavers in the past. As you say: all hours, all temperatures and all conditions.
There is nothing nuanced about a backed up sewer.
I know! It is a very pro-Obama paper. This article slipped through the cracks.
i saw it this morning
It drives me crazy!!! I run for the remote every morning.
“Joe the Plumber may be the guy that brings down Obama hard. And even better, the media may be the one that helps Joe to do it.”
I have been hitting the internet hard trying to get the facts on the negative Joe stuff and I am amazed at the depth of penetration that he has made throughout the web. You can’t even go to a police forum or a flower forum without seeing a Joe the Plumber thread.
He already had one in Todd Palin.
I've noticed that most of the McCain signs in my state are in front of modest houses or small businesses, often with pickups parked in front. Most of the places with sprawling yards and immaculately restored antique houses have 0bama signs; one of them, which looks like the Governor's mansion in Williamsburg, VA, has a Prius with a peace sign.
I can stand it more than the villages in florida they show all the time!
May I suggest one that has a plumber sliding out from under a kitchen sink as he talks about Obama's tax increase.
Then he grabs his beer off the counter and as he opens it he can say something about Obama just doesn't understand "Joe Six Pack American."
Then as he opens the beer and starts drinking the screen fades into a picture of McCain and Palin at a rally. A voice over then says something about cutting taxes for the business's that are the backbone of this country and that,
"McCain understands the people who make America great, and you can count on him to fight for you"
It could happen!
The Possibilites are endless
They stopped showing The Villages here...thankfully. Stanley Steamer has now taken over. ;) They all drive me nuts.
These guys are great. Thanks, Joe in Georgia!
I think we should all go to vote with a plunger in hand...
But Obama and Biden say real plumbers don’t make that much. This guy has to be a fake republican plant too..........
Here in OkC, we have JOE THE CAR SALESMAN
Car Dealers Suggest Obama Didnt Know What He Was Talking About
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2107035/posts
Heard this one ALL DAY on KTOK!
You are a plumber! No one really knows what is involved to earn that dollar. Thank god for dirty jobs. Obama has shown me nothing but poor choices with his friends and leaders. If Obama wants to distribute the wealth let him come work with me for a week and see if he still wants to sread the wealth!!!
I think that most people in Washinton have forgoten what this country was really built on. Obama wants to take money from me and my employees to spread around, but his economic advisers helped to put us here. Americans aren’t innocent most of use got caught up living beyond our means. But in the 750 billion dollar bail out bill was a section to give money to the makers of wooden arrows for kids bow and arrow sets... give me a break, that’s just another reason why gov. (Obama) has no business being there. Who is going to bail out the plumbers who have been hit nation wide, along with all americans. the only way out that I know for my company and my guys is to get to work, do the job right and do it 1 time. Washington should have the same idea because that’s the only way this will work. I had no idea that my comments would go so far. I’m glad I’m not alone. Thank you for you’re comments. God bless
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