What You and Joe the Plumber Have in Common

During the first 10 minutes of the third and final debate between Obama and McCain, someone named "Joe the plumber" was mentioned 13 times, according to Philip Elliott of The Associated Press. Fox News says, the now famous plumber's name was mentioned by McCain and Obama a total of 26 times throughout the debate.

Already, every major news organization has done a piece on Joe the Plumber. He's been interviewed by CNN, Fox News, and the rest. And there's more to come. In fact, I just came across this on the Fox News website:

"Joe Wurzelbacher will appear on FOX News Channel's Huckabee program in an exclusive prime time interview to air this Saturday at 8 p.m. ET. The show will re-air on Sunday night, also at 8 p.m. ET. Wurzelbacher will appear on the program with his son and father."

During the October 15th debate, McCain injected Joe into the debate by telling Obama, "Joe wants to buy the business that he has been in for all of these years, worked 10, 12 hours a day. And he wanted to buy the business but he looked at your tax plan and he saw that he was going to pay much higher taxes... You were going to put him in a higher tax bracket, which was going to increase his taxes, which was going to cause him not to be able to employ people, which Joe was trying to realize the American dream."

Isn't it ironic that someone from an Obama campaign event ended up being McCain's best hope for points in the debate? Politics is a game of sudden twists.

McCain grabbed onto the Joe thing with bulldog tenacity, sensing that Joe gave him a golden opportunity to dress up the tax issue in flesh and bone. Later in the debate, McCain, said with emphasis, his eyes fixed on the camera, "Joe, I want to tell you, I'll not only help you buy that business that you worked your whole life for and I'll keep your taxes low and I'll provide available and affordable health care for you and your employees. And I will not stand for a tax increase on small-business income."

That came across as quite effective, and it probably scored the most points for McCain in the whole debate. Joe the Plumber might have become a winning ticket for McCain the Candidate.

Who is this average Joe, who has become the standard bearer for America's middle class, and an effective weapon on McCain's lips, if not the anchor of the senator's presidential hopes?

His full name is Samuel Joe Wurzelbacher, and he is a plumber who lives in Ohio. The plumber attended an Obama rally in Toledo. At the event, Joe told the Democrat nominee that Obama's plan to raise taxes on those making $250,000 or more would prevent him from buying the plumbing business, where he currently works. Obama responded to Joe by using the phrase "spreading the wealth", words which McCain seized upon to drive home his point that Obama's tax plan is bad for small business. Joe said Obama's response made him "uneasy".

Joe the Plumber is not saying who he'll vote for. To those who are curious to know how Joe will vote, the plumber says, "That's for me and a button to know."

Obviously, Joe the Plumber has given voice to those who are troubled by Obama's plan to increase the tax burden on individuals and businesses making $250K and higher. To make matters worse, Obama has not yet explained if his $250,000 ceiling refers to gross or net income. That clarification could mean a world of difference to so many Americans, and could mean votes too. That's important.

When asked later about his new-found national fame, Joe replied, "It's pretty surreal, man, my name being mentioned in a presidential campaign." Then he indicated that he might just capitalize on his popularity for his plumbing career.

All the tabloid juice aside, here is the really important question for those who care about higher taxes on anyone. What happens if Joe decides to buy the plumbing business, begins to make $250,000 per year, and President Obama raises his taxes?

He will do exactly what every "rich" business person does every time they have to pay more in taxes: Joe will reckon the new taxes as additional cost of doing business. Then he will find a way to pass that cost on to his customers by charging them more for his plumbing service. That's the way it works in the real world of business, and that's what it means when you hear people say, "Rich people don't pay taxes."

Every entrepreneur went into business to make a profit. While higher taxes may reduce the profit margin, a true entrepreneur will always find a way to "trickle down" the tax burden in the same way that the business passes down the cost when the business owner has to pay more for supplies, equipment, real estate or anything having to do with operating the business.

The same math magic works in the fuel industry: Say, politicians raise taxes on Exxon Mobil, the rich oil company. OK. All right. What does Exxon Mobil do? Don't worry, Exxon Mobil knows the game. Here it goes: raise the price gas stations pay for their supply of fuel. What will the owner of the gas station down your street do? That's right: raise your gas price at the pump.

So who ends up paying for the higher tax that Obama will levy on "Joe the Plumber" (the typical business)? You and I do. How? The next time you need a plumber, you'll pay for fixing your kitchen sink or unclogging your bathtub.

In a free market economy, higher taxes on business always mean higher prices for consumers who pay for goods and services.

One more point: If it does not make business sense for Joe the Plumber to raise the price on consumers, then he'll cut cost, say, by laying off an employee or two, or by not hiring a new worker. Also, the employer can respond to a tax hike by not giving employees a pay raise or a promotion that might require higher pay. Whatever way you cut it, it's the little guy who ends up paying the burden of higher taxes "on the rich". Beware!

Bottom line is whenever Uncle Sam raises taxes on Joe the Plumber (small or big business), we all end up paying more or losing more. That's what the rich and the politician have figured out, and what everybody else has yet to.

Actually, Joe the Plumber is not a licensed plumber yet. He has to take his state test first. That means his question to Obama was little more than a hypothetical, though the same cannot be said of Obama's response. Anyway, Joe the Plumber is the one Joe that's no longer an average Joe. Not bad for a guy who became famous at an event he never attended, a debate to which he was not even invited.