It's hard to keep up with the McCain camp plants. I can't even remember the name of the black, right-wing radio host that "appeared" at the McCain rally and "begged" McCain to take off the gloves and fight, but he obviously was in colusion with the campaign.

And now we have a plethora of Joe the Plumber stories this morning, many calling him the "game changer" and other such nonsense. But we also have a number of stories looking into the man's actual background.

From Jake Tapper's blog, Political Punch:

ABC News' Chris Bury is outside Toledo, near the home of Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher, aka "Joe the Plumber," and reports that Wurzelbacher -- such a key part of Sen. John McCain's critique of Sen. Barack Obama's economic proposals -- acknowledged that he wants to purchase the plumbing business for $250-280,000, not that he would net that much in profits.

He would make much less, he said.

Which would seem to indicate that he would be eligible for an Obama tax cut, not that he would be subject to the tax increase from 36% to 39% Obama would impose on those making more than $200,000 per person, or $250,000 per family.

Wurzelbacher this morning told ABC News' Diane Sawyer that he was talking about, in Diane's words, the prospect, the hope that someday he would make $250,000.

Sounds to me like Joe "misrepresented" his concerns about falling into Obama's above-$250,000 tax margin. And then there's the whole "I'm an undecided voter" position that Mr. Wurzelbacher was claimed to occupy. Turns out the he wasn't very "undecided" after all, according to Ben Smith's blog:

Linda Howe, executive director of the Lucas County Board of Elections, said a Samuel Joseph Worzelbacher, whose address and age match Joe the Plumber's, registered in Lucas County on Sept. 10, 1992. He voted in his first primary on March 4, 2008, registering as a Republican.

But maybe he was an undecided, registered Republican? Let's ask Joe, or more correctly, let's let Katie Couric ask him, as noted with a video clip on The Jed Report, and see what the result was:

We don't know much about Joe The Plumber, but we do know this: he made up his mind who he was voting for before last night's debate.

Speaking with Katie Couric, "Joe" said that he "wasn't swayed" by the debate last night, yet pretty much knew who he was going to vote for. So if (a) he wasn't swayed by the debate and (b) knows who he is going to vote for, then (c) he had already made up his mind before the debate.

OK, so undecided, concerned about making a $250,000 profit, Joe-whose-real-name-is-Sam at least wasn't directly prepped by the McCain campaign. Again from Ben Smith:

McCain aides say there was no heads-up for Joe the Plumber, who's headed out to the morning shows tomorrow.

   "Joe didn't know" that he'd be at the center of the debate," said Matt McDonald.

   "We tried to call him during the debate, but his phone was busy," he said. "We're not going to put him through media training."

So the McCain campaign says they never contacted Joe the Plumber...but they also had his phone number. Now it's very possible someone in the media gave them his phone number, but if you can find any listing for Joe Wurzelbacher in Holland, Ohio, you're more industrious than I am.

Well, I'm not that industrious, and why shouldn't I believe what Joe the Plumber says, or the McCain campaign for that matter?

update: looks like Joe is behind by about $1200 in his taxes, according to a Clerk of Courts docket just posted at Daily Kos.

Joe doesn't appear to hold a valid license to be a plumber, either, according to these queries.

And yes, there is Joe's father Robert Wurzlebacher. Is this the same Robert Wurzlebacher who is better known as the right wing fanatic and contributor who is the son in law of Charles Keating?

And is it possible that he is related to another Wurzelbacher by the name of Doug Wurzelbacher? Doug is active in competitive dog sled racing. Guess where he lives? Wasilla, Alaska.