This is our last post about Joe the Plumber (for the foreseeable future), we promise.
However, some interesting information about who this guy really is has come to light. Full revelations below... but for starters, everyone out there who suspected he was a fraud and that Joe the Plumber is actually Joe the Not A Plumber? Collect your prize...
1) The Toledo Blade:
Wurzelbacher said he works under Al Newell’s license, but according to Ohio building regulations, he must maintain his own license to do plumbing work.
He is also not registered to operate as a plumber in Ohio, which means he’s not a plumber.
2) By the way, the Plumbers Unions have already endorsed Obama. The United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing
and Pipe Fitting Industry responded to Joe right after the debate, with this press release:
As the first union to endorse Barack Obama for the presidency, the UA looked long and hard at which candidates would put the needs of all the Joes in America first. Barack Obama has a plan to cut taxes for working people while investing in good jobs and lifting wages.
3) The Blade adds:
Wulzerbacher’s notoriety has raised the ire of Tom Joseph, business manager for Local 50 of the United Association of Plumbers, Steamfitters, and Service Mechanics, who claimed that Mr. Wulzerbacher didn’t undergo any apprenticeship training.
"When you have guys going out there with no training whatsoever, it’s a little disreputable to start with," Mr. Joseph said. "We’re the real Joe the Plumber."
In December, 2007, the Ohio Department of Taxation placed a lien against [Joe] because $1,183 in personal property taxes had not been paid...
Wurzelbacher said he objects to Mr. Obama’s plans to raise income taxes on incomes above $250,000. He said he makes nowhere near that much money but he would not say how much he makes... Mr. Wurzelbacher made $40,000 in 2006.
4) It gets better. If the blogs are to be believed, Joe isn't even registered to vote in Ohio (or, probably, anywhere.) He last voted in 2006, so it seems likely that he is, although the fact that his registered party, the Natural Law Party, disbanded, which could cause him some problems on the rolls. And one more thing, the Natural Law Party platform supports an insanely low 10% flat tax, which would bankrupt the government almost immediately. Read their platform here.
5) Other rumors have been floating around all day that he is related to Charles Keating of the Keating Five, and therefore a relative of one of McCain's former associates. If that is true, it would lend credence to the theory also going around that Joe the Plumber is actually Joe the McCain Mole.
We'll have more on this story if anything interesting happens... otherwise, moving along...
Via Hotline On Call.
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