Joe the Plumber's break from the GOP: I smell a rat.

[Old and In the Way]

Give me a break...Joe is as Republican today as he was yesterday. His interests are seeing the Republican brand do well. I suspect he got the message that he needed to 'break' with the Party. The data is showing that Joe is polling bad news for growing the Republican brand. The marketing campaign was a bust. I expect to see a few more 'breaks' like these in the future.

[AKing]

1. Nothing more than the useless campaign prop trying to extend his 15 minutes

[rwheeler31]

2. Call joe to snake your toilet. Rats can bite you.

[MissB]

3. He seems like he is an attention whore. Probably just looking for an

extra 15 minutes...

[Tarheel_Dem]

4. I suspect you're right. However, I'm waiting for someone to have the guts...

to take on Rush, and not backpedal. So far, Colin Powell is standing his ground. But the true test will be how they handle the Palins from here on in, because it seems the more visible they are, the worse the polling gets for the party.

[Critters2]

5. The Christian Science Monitor has a great op-ed about this:

http://features.csmonitor.com/politics/2009/05/07/gop-disaster-first-specter-and-now-joe-the-plumber/





Can the Republican party survive? This is a tough one. Perhaps the biggest challenge yet.

If the old saying is true that it’s always darkest before the dawn, then it must be midnight (or whenever it’s really dark). :)

[jobycom]

6. I don't know. He may have just gotten tired of being used.

I doubt he cares about politics beyond what it puts in his pockets. He probably just realized they didn't give a rat's pahooky about any of his problems, and decided to quit being their fundraiser poster child.

Most people who aren't involved in politics for life get quickly disillusioned by both parties once they do get involved. Cindy Sheehan, Paul Hackett, Joe the Plumber... Average folk never realize how vicious it can be.

[tridim]

7. I bet he was seduced by the Ron Paul nutbags.

[drm604]

8. I agree.

There's no way he makes money by leaving the party, unless they're paying him to.

[JaneQPublic]

9. He was initially reported to be an Independent.

As I recall, that the story when he first got in the news: He wasn't a licensed plumber, he owed back taxes, and he was registered as an Independent, not a Repuke.