Joe The Plumber To Report On Conflict In Gaza

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - The Ohio plumber who had challenged President-elect Barack Obama's tax plan during the campaign and who became a main feature of Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) stump speeches has been hired by a conservative website to cover the conflict in Gaza.

Joe Wurzelbacher will stay in Israel for 10 days and report on the fighting between Israel forces and Hamas militants occupying the Gaza Strip for pjtv.com, which is run by Pajamas Media.

During a campaign stop in Ohio in October, Wurzelbacher had told then-Senator Obama that he was planning to buy a company that earns $250,000 to $280,000 annually. He then asked, "Your new tax plan is going to tax me more, isn't it?" referring to the Democrat's plan to raise taxes on people with incomes above $250,000.

Obama had responded, "It's not that I want to punish your success, I just want to make sure that everybody who is behind you, that they've got a chance for success too. My attitude is that if the economy's good for folks from the bottom up, it's gonna be good for everybody... I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody... Even if I don't get your vote, I am going to work for you."

McCain had seized the conversation as proof of his repeated criticism that Obama would raise the taxes of working Americans at a time of economic uncertainty. The Republican senator mentioned Wurzelbacher, who had by then gained the national moniker of "Joe the Plumber," more than 20 times during the third and final presidential debate. He also invoked Wurzelbacher in stump speeches, TV ads and during the Al Smith Dinner.

But subsequent scrutiny by the media yielded holes in Joe the Plumber's story. It was revealed that he wasn't a licensed plumber, that he did not have the money to buy the company he said he planned to, and that he owes the state of Ohio $1,200 in back taxes.

Apart from the dispute between the two candidates about who championed the cause of everyday Americans, Wurzelbacher also triggered a debate when he said Obama's plan to "spread the wealth" was "a pretty socialist comment."

On Tuesday, Wurzelbacher told Toledo-based WNWO-TV, "I get to go over there and let their 'Average Joes' share their story, what they think, how they feel, especially with world opinion, maybe get a real story out there."

"Being a Christian I'm pretty well protected by God I believe. That's not saying he's going to stop a mortar for me, but you gotta take the chance," he added.