Joe The Plumber Does Damage Control, With The Help Of Breitbart And Hannity

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by Frances Martel | 1:43 pm, February 17th, 2010

» 8 comments

Joe the Plumber, aka Samuel Wurzelbacher, is just a regular guy that tells it like it is. That’s why when the mainstream media takes quotes like “[John McCain] really screwed up my life” and “I don’t owe him s—” out of context, he feels it is his duty to set the record straight. His clarification tour has so far been short, sweet, and just in time for the five congressional primaries he has endorsed a candidate in so far, publishing an opinion piece on Andrew Breitbart‘s Big Government and making a special appearance on last night’s edition of Hannity.

The article– his opening act– is fairly mild-mannered, though he never quite backs down from his words. Calling McCain an “honest-to- goodness, true blue American hero” and evoking the name of the Patron Saint of Conservatism, he explains that he regrets his wording:

“I broke Ronald Reagan’s “11th commandment” not to criticize fellow conservatives in public and the liberal mainstream media has had a field day with it. I regret that. I wish I had said it to his face and privately. I do honestly believe that John McCain’s service to our country as a courageous naval aviator and POW rightfully earned him nothing but respect. He has represented the epitome of honor, duty and unimaginable sacrifice. And for the record, he didn’t ruin my life. He and Barrack [sic] Obama sent me down a far different path than the one I was happily on–a new path that made me famous, notorious, sought after and vilified.”

“I wish I had said it to his face” isn’t exactly an apology, and his final zinger– “to fully answer the reporter who said that John McCain ‘made me’–I was made by my country, my faith and my family”– set the tone for his interview with Sean Hannity later that night, where he was on the offensive. Introduced by the host as “one of the McCain campaign’s deadliest weapons,” he clarified that the media had taken his quotes out of context by calling McCain “the lesser of two evils,” claiming he “doesn’t represent true conservatism,” and confirming that he doesn’t support him “at all.”

But, taking a page out of the Sarah Palin publicity handbook, the real villain in this story isn’t McCain– it’s the mainstream media. McCain didn’t “screw up” his life, he explains, but, rather, the media took away his livelihood. When he met Obama, he “was living the American dream,” but then “the media closed down [his] business for two months.” And, once again, the media takes the fall for spinning his words into their narrative, even though he doesn’t back down from them.

Hannity concludes the interview by getting Wurzelbacher to half-heartedly admit one of the most thinly veiled launches of a political career in recent memory: “You’re Joe the Plumber! Would you consider running [for office]?” Wurzelbacher admits he has considered it, creating a possible scenario that may outdo SNL‘s interpretation of a Palin/Glenn Beck win in 2012.

Watch Joe the Plumber on Hannity below:

Andrew Breitbart, Breitbart, conservatives, damage control, fox news, Hannity, Joe the Plumber, John McCain, Republican plumbers, Republicans, Samuel Wurzelbacher, Sarah Palin, Sean Hannity

Olby Sucks

Joe The Plumber exposed obama for what he really is. Let’s be perfectly clear on that. ;)
Jim R

Typical right wing history revisionism. Disregard taped conversations as media out of context reporting – check, revise according to the way you wish it would have turned out – check, quickly change subject while making spurious claims – check.

By the way:

“I do honestly believe that John McCain’s service to our country as a courageous naval aviator and POW rightfully earned him nothing but respect.”

You might check with the instructors who wondered if non-son-of-Admirals get to crash five planes and keep flying and earning “nothing but respect”; Sammy the not a plumber not a business owner.

.
The Real Royal King

Can you believe Hannity is still giving this ignorant fraud air time? It makes no sense at all.
ImNotBlue

Jim R says:
February 17, 2010 at 2:09 pm

You might check with the instructors who wondered if non-son-of-Admirals get to crash five planes and keep flying and earning “nothing but respect”; Sammy the not a plumber not a business owner.

More of that love from the left for McCain AND the military! Thanks Jim, you’re tolerance and respect is noted.
_________

JTP reminds me a lot of Cindy Sheehan. When Sheehan was really popular the media fawned over her daily, seeing what she was going to say or do next in terms of attacking President Bush. They rarely fact checked her, so when she would make statements that were blatantly false or misleading, she wouldn’t be challenged. However, as soon as the tides turned, and she was no longer a Democratic weapon, rather she was fighting AGAINST the Democrats, she faded away… she was no longer the media darling.

Did you know that she’s still out there protesting? According to Wiki, she protested against President Obama in August, while he was at Martha’s Vineyard. But that didn’t get much coverage. She also protested in Norway, when Obama picked up his Nobel Peace Prize… but that didn’t get much coverage either.

So Sheehan’s similarity to JTP, is really in their effect to various politicians, but illustrates the opposite nature of the media coverage. When JTP speaks negatively about someone like McCain, the media has a field day… same with Sheehan. However, when JTP speaks negatively about Obama, just like Sheehan, the media puts it on the back burner. So when JTP makes comments about how the media have blown his statements out of proportion (although, when it comes down to it, his statements are just as valuable as Sheehan’s… which is to say, not very), he is far from incorrect.
blueblogger

Blue I am consistenty amazed at how well you read peoples minds (Jim R). I didn’t hear him saying any thing negative about the military.

Could it be that Sheehan is just “old news” and JTP not so much???
Hannity Hussein

Joe “the Plumber” is a fucking retard.
I mean that in the satirical sense.
Oh wait, the liberal mainstream media has used my words against me.

Wait, wait… Sean and Rush I didn’t mean anything. Let me kiss shine your shoes right quick.

I need to pay my rent and those damned liberals have hidden my wrenches again.

On fox news 15 minutes of infamy can last a lifetime.
Nice gig.
ImNotBlue

blueblogger says:
February 17, 2010 at 3:52 pm

So Sheehan, who was big news only a few years ago, is now not important enough for any coverage… even though she’s doing the same thing she was doing then? What’s changed… except the guy in the White House. Ah… perhaps that IS it!

I didn’t hear him saying any thing negative about the military.

So you missed this:

You might check with the instructors who wondered if non-son-of-Admirals get to crash five planes and keep flying and earning “nothing but respect”;

Remember, he’s not only trashing a politician, but a former aviator. Imagine if instead of McCain, he was talking about Soldier Bob, the guy nobody remembers. Would his comment that he apparently hasn’t earned any respect, sit well with you? To me that not only shows disrespect to McCain… but to the entire military. That’s not mind reading, that’s just critical thinking.
Nachi

Ohh, Samual Wurzelbacher, pride of GOP Land; no less a military “hero” than McShame, now that our Holy Grail of the Stupor Bowl has left us, we call on you to lead us into our righteous light and intelligensia. We thank you for these joys, Jeesussah.

Now if we cun jest git thru Tiger, we cun surmass anythung them durty libruls can hurl gainst us! Nuther Misshun Complushed!!