Joe The Plumber

We now know that Joe The Plumber is not a plumber, nor is he in the tax bracket that led him to challenge Barack Obama on tax policy. Yet, he is now campaigning with John McCain and is referred to at every campaign stop by the Republican ticket. It is possible that this election prop may have done more to tighten the race in key battleground states than any other line of attack. Lower taxes and limited government intervention are two basic tenets of conservatism in a center-right nation, and they have become the best closing arguments for McCain.

It makes one wonder why McCain chose to run a Rove-like campaign at a time when the country was looking for steady leadership. Personal attacks did more to turn off voters from McCain than Obama’s personal qualities or well-run campaign. Now, the Joe The Plumber prop, while tacky, is adding to the suspense of the campaign in key battleground states like Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Missouri and Indiana just 48 hours from election day.