Making it easy

The Politico reports that McCain doesn't know how many houses he owns? [Audio here.] This is a comical in one respect, and extremely important in another. First, why this is comical: it has nothing to do with being president. It is not related to any policy decisions or even leadership. But it is extremely important because McCain was trying to (and I would say succeeding) paint Obama as elite and effete. It is really hard to do that when you and your wife own 7 (and possibly more) houses. Despite his military service, he can no longer act like a man of the people. It is clear that he is not financially, and what more both he and Obama both the ability to empathize with poor and working class voters. The elite argument is now hypocritical.

Update: the McCain camp needs to get their shit together. These responses to the number of houses he owns are digging him deeper and deeper into this mess. So you can't really call Obama elite anymore, how about arguing policies...oh right, that isn't a good idea either.

Here are the three excuses for not remembering (not in chronological order):
1. The McCain owns four houses and most are an investment, but Obama lives in a mansion. Take a look at the McCain estate.
2. Marc Ambinder reports that an unidentified McCain official said that the difference between Obama's mocking McCain for his wealth and his shaky answer on the number of homes he owns was that McCain's charge "reflects an existential reality," where Obama's charges "attack Cindy. She owns the homes. I thought he said the wives were off-limits."
3."This is a guy who lived in one house for five and a half years -- in prison," McCain spokesman Brian Rogers told the Washington Post.

Rogers also told the Post, "In terms of who's an elitist, I think people have made a judgment that John McCain is not an arugula-eating, pointy headed professor-type based on his life story." You are correct.

McCain is a noun, a verb, and POW.

As Josh Marshall points out the campaign has used the fact that McCain was a POW to explain a lot of his gaffes recently.

One more thing to add and I don't think the Obama campaign is going to run with this, but the media may start picking up on it especially with McCain's birthday on August 29th, when he will turn 72. Watch the number of times that McCain answers a question that can't "remember." That and I wonder if the press will call him out on the hypocracy of calling Congress back in when he hasn't voted since April 4. Yeah, and there might be unicorns and leprechauns.

More Updated: Jake Tapper seems to be one reporter holding McCain's feet to the flames. Let's see how long this lasts.

More More Update: The McCain cribs.

More More More Update: Politico has decided the McCains own eight houses, and from 2006 to 2007, the McCain's budget for household staff went up just over 50% from $184,000 to $273,000.

Man this story needs to die...I know that it won't because it real political legs.


_John

image: "Monopoly Houses" from flickr Anna-B