Slow Go For Bookwriting Joe

In his especially long, dragged-out 16th minute, Joe The Book Writer (formerly, Joe The Plumber) is finding that once glowing spotlight, dimming into the horizon.



Joe the Author, Plumbing New Lows in Interest

About 11 people wandered into the rows of seats set up hopefully in the basement of a downtown Border's bookstore to hear Joe speak. Joe addressed them from behind a lectern and with a microphone, but that seemed unnecessarily formal.

[Snip]

It's fair to say Joe's appearance at Borders at 18th and L streets wasn't eagerly anticipated. People just kind of shuffled over when Joe strode in with Thomas N. Tabback, the co-author of "Joe the Plumber: Fighting for the American Dream." Annie Hickman, a young woman whom Wurzelbacher called "sweetie" during a brief Q&A, was browsing when the PA announced that Joe was in the house. "I'm missing pottery class for this," she said.

Lawyer Alana Hecht was curious. "I was upstairs reading 'Dreams From My Father,' " Obama's memoir. "It's just fate. Who could leave when this is happening?" She and Hickman laughed. Washington, such a weird town.

[Snip]

Wurzelbacher says he's still no fan of Obama, but confessed that he never liked McCain all that much, either. Nor has he cared for the politicians he's met on Capitol Hill. "Liars and thieves," he called them.

[Snip]

Wurzelbacher was scheduled to speak and sign books for three hours, but the Joe Show was over in 55 minutes. Total copies of "Joe the Plumber" sold: five.

Not exactly "Walking the Talk", is it?

To bad he can't walk back laughing at Obama's speech, as he did.

Steve Benen asked, in his "JOE THE AFTERTHOUGHT" "So, why is his take on a presidential address worthy of a piece at the Politico? Your guess is as good as mine."

At least one of the flying monkeys is calling for the PartyofNoicans to lose this Joe Schmoe, that he's dragging down the party, blurring their true identity, you know, as humble, middle-class worker bees;

From Patrick Ruffini's "The Joe-the-Plumberization of the GOP"

Conservatives should not need Joe the Plumber to prove their middle class bona fides. We are naturally the party of the middle, and we don't need gimmicks to prove it. Demographically, Democrats rely on being the party of the upper sixth and the lower third, while Republicans tend to do better with everyone in between. When we start losing the middle class and the suburbs, we lose big like we did in 2008.

Put another way, Republicans thrive as the party of normal Americans -- the people in the middle culturally and economically. This is true of our leadership as well -- we have a history of nominating figures who came first from outside politics. Our base is the common-sense voter in the middle who bought a house she could afford and didn't lavishly overspend in good times and who is now subsidizing the person who didn't.

WTF?

Thankfully, Steve M, over on No More Mister Nice Blog, dispatches that claim.

DON'T BLAME THIS ON US, PATRICK

That's a load of crap. Right-wingers embraced Joe not because we made them feel defensive but because they've deluded themselves into believing that they're the natural champions of (cue Sarah Palin) wearers of "the Carhartts and the steel-toed boots," of country-music fans and NASCAR fans and huntin', fishin', good ol' boys ...

[Snip]

Ruffini even expresses this nonsense himself, declaring that "Republicans thrive as the party of normal Americans -- the people in the middle culturally and economically." (Even though the last three Republican presidents were a Hollywood millionaire and two zillionth-generation Connecticut-born preppies, Patrick?)

Unfortuantely, for the PartyofNoicans, Bobby Jindal's crash-and-burn the other evening benefits Joe The Book Writer.

Like they say in boxing, you gotta knock out the champ, and Jindal didn't even get out of the first round.

And with CPAC setting up it's toxic tent this weekend, there's bound to be someone there to offer Joe The Book Writer a 17th minute.


Bonus Joe Schmoe Riffs

Libby Spencer: Joe the Whatever

Melissa McEwan: Poor Joe

Scott Whitlock: Washington Post Dismisses Joe the Plumber as 'Leftover Artifact' From 2008

For Joe The Plumber