So, WHO is the reeeeal Joe the Plumber?

The most famous plumber in America, recently replacing the well-known, generic porn plumber, was mentioned over 20 times during the final Presidential debate. He is Joe the Plumber, and he was brought up by John McCain as someone who apparently was supposed to be this quintessential everyman who would be hurt by Obama's tax plan. Joe (real name: Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher) got attention by 'confronting' Obama with a story that he was a hard-working plumber who was looking to buy the business he'd been working in for over ten years, but he was concerned because he said it would put him in the $250,000+ tax bracket, and wouldn't that mean he was going to get higher taxes? See the full exchange of that below:

So, there's the background. Here's the ironic/funny stuff that's been uncovered since, in no particular order:

• Joe doesn't have a plumbing license, and apparently don't need no stinkin' license, either.
• Direct quote this time, because I can't really say it any better: Joe is also "not registered to operate as a plumber in Ohio, which means he’s not a plumber."
• That part about Joe buying his employer's business? Part of a question at his job interview six years ago.
• "Tom Joseph, business manager for Local 50 of the United Association of Plumbers, Steamfitters, and Service Mechanics [claims] that Mr. Wulzerbacher didn’t undergo any apprenticeship training." He considers it "disreputable" for guys like Joe to "[go] out there with no training whatsoever."
• Joe lied when he said he was "getting ready to buy" that plumbing business. The Toledo Blade later reported that Joe "said he makes no where near that much money but he would not say how much he makes or if he ever expects to make $250,000. Court records from a divorce show Mr. Wurzelbacher made $40,000 in 2006." Pretty significant difference, if you ask me.
• You've got to laugh when you find out that a guy who was making a big deal about the concept of paying a bit more in taxes is revealed to owe over a thousand dollars in back taxes himself. $1,183, to be exact.
• Joe voted for McCain in the primary (his first vote since registering in 1992), and he reportedly said he likes Sarah Palin. Is it any surprise, then, that he referred to some of Obama's comments in the exchange above as "socialist"? Sounds like someone been getting his daily dose of talking points.
• Joe considers himself "a fan of the military". Okay, now I know he's really swallowing those talking points. As opposed to who, Joe? Has anyone ever been told by someone else that they're "not a fan of the military"?
• Joe's example of someone who has "a lot of pull" in the election is Matt Damon. Huh?

All in all, this is just plain goofy. You can tell from a lot of the things Joe's on record saying that he seems to wish everyone would just leave him alone.

Well, I guess it's a little too late for that, Joe, but you can always join the effort to remove yourself from Wikipedia if you want.