Joe the Plumber: Pay no taxes, get no voice

Updated

Joe the Plumber, friend of American taxpayers, has taken a beating over the last couple of days for daring to ask Barack Obama a question many of us would like to ask. He wanted to know how Obama's tax increases on "the wealthy" might affect him if he buys a plumbing business. How dare he ask such a question when he is behind on his taxes, has no plumbing license, and might not even be able to afford to buy this plumbing business!

Joe never claimed to be anything other than a taxpayer with a question. Yet he's been "vetted" by the media and details of his divorce and income tax situation have been blasted all over the Internet. I'm not saying there's necessarily anything wrong with people looking at these public records and discussing them, yet you have to feel sorry for the guy who really didn't ask to be put under a microscope like this. He just wanted to ask a simple question about taxes.

But it got me thinking... The implication from a number of media outlets and bloggers is that since Joe is delinquent on his taxes, he shouldn't be asking Barack Obama a question. I don't know that anyone's been so crude as to actually come out and say that, but I think the harsh criticism of Joe has made it pretty clear that many people think he should shut his mouth.

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