Marrying rich?

One of the latest mini-"scandals" is that John McCain can't say, off the cuff, how many homes he actually has. Of the roughly 300 people in America, it's a fair bet that maybe 280 million can actually talk or otherwise communicate under their own power, and probably no more than a handful of those 280 million people would ever have the slightest problem telling you, without thinking about the question, just how many homes they own.

Is McCain too rich? Is McCain senile? Is he out of touch? Or is this just a latest smear job of a hard-working guy who means well? Oh, that depends entirely on whom you ask.

The Wall Street Journal offers an introduction to HouseGate.

But it'll be interesting to see how this issue gets spun by both sides -- Obama already has an ad -- but particularly by some of the "conservative" establishment. Glenn Greenwald has sort of a pre-emptive strike going on how another politician was attacked for being such an enthusiastic real estate investor. Will people be jumping to McCain's defense? Will any of the people who levied similar attacks four years ago weigh in on this one?

The potential for high-profile hypocrisy is absolutely stunning on this one. Let's see who crosses the losing line first.

Edit: Oh, boy, did I post entirely too soon. It didn't take long.

Rush Limbaugh, circa 2008:

This house business, this is such a nonstory. The rich elitism now is almost entirely found on the left. From the Jay Rockefellers to the John Kerrys to the Pelosis. I mean Pelosi is a multimillionairess with her husband. She's got all kinds of homes. This business that they're still focusing on McCain on this, just classic, just classic the way the media just pumps this stuff up and tries to make a story out of it to try to help Obama, because it's such a nonstory.

And then there's a different point of view in 2004:

Then John Kerry's daddy is his wives. (laughter) I mean, he's a gigolo. Everybody knows this. There's nobody in our party really has much respect for this guy and you can see it last night, but I can't say that. I mean, you got sugar daddy wife back then. You got sugar daddy wife now. He worked his way up from a blue blood to a platinum American Express card, and it doesn't have his name on it.

So remember, the rich elitist people are only problems when they're rich elitist liberals.

It's amazing that some attacks can stand, like the one about Obama being a celebrity. Guess what? The attack dogs on the right have found a way to portray Obama as a bad guy for being popular and inspirational among potential voters. That there Anonymous Liberal suggested a speech for Obama:

So remember, when John McCain and his surrogates call me a "celebrity," they're not insulting me; they're insulting you. They're insinuating that you are a mindless groupie rather than a concerned citizen, a fan rather than a voter.

Will these attacks and counterattacks work? Perhaps. Time will tell. It's a shame that politics has gotten so in the gutter that the most positive things have become methods of attack, the most potentially inspirational things have been turned into a drawback, a chance to involve more voters is a some sort of horrible fad -- when they're those evil liberals.

Here's to hoping American voters recognize this sorta crap for, well, the crap that it is. Judge candidates on true things -- their ability to organize and lead, their positions on specific issues, their experience, all of that, all the things of substance. But, America, please don't let some slimy misguided attack ad turn good into bad.