Joe the Plumber Likes A Little Lynching

Contrary to the Warholian predictions that Samuel "Joe the Plumber" Wurzelbacher would be gone in 15 minutes, he appears to be developing a career as a conservative celebrity. Joe's not as famous as Limbaugh or Coulter but he's still very much an attraction for right-wing audiences.

What's the secret of Joe's success? Like other conservative celebrities, Joe is staying relevant by bidding up the violence and name calling. Here's Joe speaking at a meeting of the Wisconsin chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a right-wing group that was heavily involved in the Tea Party protests.

Wurzelbacher has a reputation for being a blunt, politically incorrect speaker. Referring to Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., more than once, Wurzelbacher asked, "Why
hasn't he been strung up?"

Joe the Plumber is far from being "blunt" or "politically incorrect." What he's doing is appealing to the "near fringe" of the conservative movement. That's the people who like to talk about things like secession, Going Galt, or survivalist dystopias but are far from the open warfare on American society that characterizes the neo-Nazis. By making the reference to lynching Chris Dodd, Joe the Plumber is satisfying the appetite for extreme rhetoric among his activist audience without "going too far over the line."

This is also what Glenn Beck's doing and I'm sure that Fox News management has had internal discussion about giving Joe the Plumber his own television show, what the format, what limitations (if any) would be placed on him, and the like.

It looks like Joe the Plumber's going to be with us for longer than originally anticipated.