How Much House Does Mitt Romney Need?

How much house does one man need?

Well, if you are Mitt Romney, you need a lot of house. Because he's personally raising all 16 of his grandchildren.

Oh, he's not? OK, whatever. It's not like his kids can afford hotels when they come to visit mom and dad.

Oh yeah, they're Romneys. They can probably at least afford a Motel 6.

After all, Mitt owns a townhouse near Boston and a vacation home on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire.

But, this isn't about those homes.

It's about his west coast home. Because Regular Americans have two east coast homes and a west coast home.

His west coast home is located in La Jolla, California. Hanging in at 3,000 square feet, it has 3 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms (because regular Americans have more bathrooms than bedrooms). Oh, and it's valued at $12 Million.

However, the Romney family home is "inadequate for their needs" according to a Romney campaign official quoted in The Salt Lake Tribune.

So, because the home is inadequate, they are going to tear it down and build a new one. The new house will come in at 11,062 square feet. For comparison, that's larger than 34% of Mormon Temples. That's not a Regular American house.

That's a La Jolla elite house.

-Bob

Pat Bagley: McCain, Romney Have Similar Values....

Hey, McCain: Who's the elitist celebrity?

Check out McCain's plans for Monday:

John and Cindy McCain appear at a fundraiser at the Beverly Hilton, 9876 Wilshire Boulevard. Tickets start at $500, and several celebrities are to attend including Angie Harmon, David Zucker, Craig T. Nelson, Jon Voight, Robert Duvall, among others Los Angeles,CA

Beverly Hills! That's where I want to be! Because regular Americans hold functions at the Beverly Hilton on Wilshire.

McCain appears for an interview on NBC's "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno." CA

Celebrities doe Letterman. Real Americans do Leno.

-Bob

Obama's Ad About McCain's Multiple Mansions, And McCain's Flailing Attempt to Shoot Back

First, the ad:



Now, McCain's brass-knuckles-in-a-gun-fight response:

“Does a guy who made more than $4 million last year, just got back from vacation on a private beach in Hawaii and bought his own million-dollar mansion with the help of a convicted felon really want to get into a debate about houses? Does a guy who worries about the price of arugula and thinks regular people “cling” to guns and religion in the face of economic hardship really want to have a debate about who’s in touch with regular Americans?

“The reality is that Barack Obama’s plans to raise taxes and opposition to producing more energy here at home as gas prices skyrocket show he’s completely out of touch with the concerns of average Americans.”

And my point-by-point rebuttal:

1. The McCain Family household income in 2006 was over $6.5 million.
2. McCain went on vacation in Columbia, which isn't even in the U.S, not to mention his current vacation at his "cabin" in Sedonia.
3. McCain's seven homes are worth an average of nearly $2 million each. And the Obamas own just the one home.
4. Keating Five. Google it.
5. Does a guy who wears $520 Italian Shoes while visiting 41 in Kennebunckport have room to talk about fancy desires.
6. 90% of Christians (and Jews and Muslums for that matter) cling to religion when times are tough.
7. Does a man who doesn't know how many properties he owns think he's in touch with everyday Americans?

Not to mention that while we are saying "seven homes," we really mean seven properties. His "cabin" in Sedonia has 4-6 homes on it by itself.

-Bob

Elitist McCain doesn't know how many homes he has

Yahoo News:

Days after he cracked that being rich in the U.S. meant earning at least $5 million a year, Republican presidential candidate John McCain acknowledged that he wasn't sure how many houses he and his wealthy wife actually own.

"I think — I'll have my staff get to you," McCain responded to a question posed by Politico, according to a story Thursday on the publication's Web site. "It's condominiums where — I'll have them get to you."

Later, the McCain campaign told Politico that McCain and his wife, Cindy, have at least four in three states, Arizona, California and Virginia. Newsweek recently estimated the two owned at least seven properties.

On the campaign trail, McCain doesn't refer to his wife's wealth, estimated by some at $100 million and based on her late father's Arizona beer distributorship.

Democratic rival Barack Obama's campaign has been trying to make their wealth more widely known to blunt criticism that Obama is an elitist out of touch with ordinary Americans. Obama owns one house, the family home in Chicago, his campaign said.

According to her 2006 tax returns, Cindy McCain had a total income of $6 million. She has not released her 2007 returns, which she files separately from her husband. McCain's tax returns showed a total income of $405,409 in 2007.

His wife has said in past interviews that the number is between 8-9.

And how elitist must you be if you don't know how many homes you own?

Bramble's Case Of The Mondays

Things must have been really bad at that meeting with the Deseret News' Editorial Board Monday.

Because, surely, a guy like Curtis Bramble couldn't possibly get his garments in a bunch over a check, could he?

Cartoon Brick Wall, with my usually expected snarkyness:

Work tonight was uneventful as usual, until my second delivery of the night.

I show up at this pretty house with a 3 car garage and lots of expensive camping equipment airing out on the front porch. A boy, maybe 12 years old, answers the door, asks the amount, and yells it to his parents who are in the kitchen. I pull the pizzas out of the bag as the father walks out to me.

"Can you take a check?"

"I can't take a personal check. We accept business checks, but not personal checks. Sorry."

He gets huffy. "Well, then you can take your pizzas back."

Because my family will starve if you can't take a check!

I'm thrown off a little. At worst people are a little annoyed that they can't pay with a check, but no one has ever told me to take their pizza back. I don't really want to go back to the store with $30 worth of pizza wasted. (It wouldn't have been entirely wasted--the employees would have eaten it for dinner, but Nick wouldn't have charged us for it, so it would have been a loss to him.) I'm deciding what to say, but he doesn't wait for me.

"Look, I'm the majority leader of the state senate, I've lived in this house for 30 years, and I've never bounced a check." He's gruff. I am uncomfortable, my eyes pleading, but I say nothing. "Do you know what that means? I'm a public figure. If I bounced a check, it would be all over the papers. I'd lose my reputation!"

Like living there for 30 years makes a difference.

Oh, and you see that object flowing down the street? You'd better wave, cause that's your "reputation."

My jaw drops as though I will say something, but I can't figure out what words are supposed to come out. He starts to walk away. "If you don't have cash, you can call the store and pay with a debit or credit card, and you can still have the pizza," I manage.

"What's the number?" He sounds angry enough to become abusive at any moment. Even taking my anxiety disorder into account, I believe this is a rational fear. "Who should I talk to?"

"Whoever answers the phone will be able to help you," I say, assuming he is just going to pay the bill. I give him the number.

The phone call: "I'd like to speak to the manager...Good. What's your name, ma'am?...Oh. What's your name, sir?...My name is _____. There's a nice young lady here who says she can't take my check."

From the tone he's been using, I'd never have guessed he thought I was a "nice young lady" or even a human being with feelings.

Um, this is a Utah Republican Legislator we're talking about, remember?

"Look, I'm the majority leader in the state senate..." etc., everything he told me.

"No one told my wife you don't take checks when she made the order."

I was not about to step in and tell him I took the order and had given her the option of cash or credit, saying nothing either way about checks. Luckily, the wife spoke up and said what I was thinking. She and her daughters were clearly embarrassed.

Yeah, cause he can hear phone conversations when he isn't on either end of the line....

"Look, I'm a CPA, so I know a check is the same as cash."

Yeah, if it's a cashier's check.

Where did he go to school to be a CPA? What's that? BYU? Oh, OK.... he's excused then, everything's explained.

"Where are you from? I'm from Chicago. You're probably from New York, right?"

How is this relevant?

"You're from Massachusetts? We're both Easterners."

Since when is Chicago considered the East?

"Then you must understand that a check is the same thing as cash. I'm from an old school of thought and I'm a CPA, so I understand that a check is as good as cash...Yes, I understand--trying to build a business and everything, but it's all money in the bank...Yes, you can talk to her."

What kind of John McCain/Mitt Romney guy is this that doesn't know that most places don't accept checks anymore. And surely, even at BYU, they learned the concept of having to track down bad checks.

Mr. Logical Fallacy hands me the phone, and I'd like to say, "Nick, I'm sorry I sicked this long-winded bastard on you," but I just say, "Hi, Nick." He tells me I can take the check as long as the man shows me his driver's license and I write the license number on the check. I hang up the phone and tell the Mr. Impressive Title what Nick said.

Taking the phone back, "What's that number again?"

Why is he still pissed? He's getting his way. I really hope the restaurant's not busy right now because Mr. Doesn't Know When to Stop has been keeping Nick from making pizza or doing anything else for several minutes, and who knows how long he'll talk this time.

The second phone call: "Nick? This is ____ again. I'm going to give you my American Express number, and pay for it that way."

Huh? Why have I been standing in this guy's front hall for the past 10 minutes?

"Look, why should I give my credit card number and the security number on the back when some unscrupulous business owner could make fraudulent charges on it?...A check is the same as cash--"

First, give the guy an idea why don't you? And, you also insulted a local business owner by calling him unscrupulous. And apparently, he's never heard of check cashing. Or PayPal.

"--but with a check you get the amount I give you. Don't you know what someone could do with the account number for a card with no credit limit?"

1) Is he accusing Nick of being a corrupt business owner? I thought people were supposed to distrust politicians, not the other way around. 2) Is he bragging about his credit?

An embarrassed daughter emerges from the kitchen and tells me I can put the pizzas down if they're getting heavy. I thank her, but hold on to the pizza. Somehow, having the boxes in my hands is giving me a sense of security. Without them, I would feel naked and vulnerable.

Mr. Ridiculously Pissed Off gives Nick the credit card number and angrily reiterates everything he has already said in both phone calls. After he hangs up, he takes the pizza from me. "This isn't your fault. You've been very professional about this."

Since when is staring uneasily at the pizza boxes I'm holding considered professional? Whatever.

"I'm sorry about this," he continues, but he still sounds like he's stifling profanity with great difficulty.

"Oh, no. I'm sorry for the confusion and inconvenience." Let's end this amicably. I turn to the door.

"Hold on just a second."

Ah! I just want to get out!

"Does anyone have any cash? I don't have any. Someone have a couple bucks?"

One of his daughters comes up with $2. Crappy tip, especially after making me suffer through that ordeal.

Didn't even pay for the gas to get her to your house, bucko. Next time, carry some cash on you like real people do.

And now, for my favorite part:

Aren't politicians supposed to be charismatic and stuff? I guess it doesn't matter what they're like in their private life. Maybe it should matter. Needless to say, now that I am registered to vote in Utah, I will not be supporting ____, current Majority Leader in the Utah State Senate. If you live in Utah, I hope you won't support him either. He is obnoxious and prideful. He argues illogically, citing irrelevant details as some sort of proof. I suspect his overly aggressive and defensive behavior masks some insecurity. And anyone who can be that rude to a complete stranger for no reason, could easily be pushed to become abusive in other situations. Not saying he is abusive, just saying it wouldn't surprise me. But what do I know?

I wonder how the rest of the Bramble's Family Night went....

Even by his standards, McCain is rich

How The Two Presidential Candidates Spent Monday, July 21, 2008

Democratic Candidate Touring Iraqi War Sites by Helipoter


John McCain looking elitist with George H.W. Bush in Kennebunkport, Maine.


(hat tip: Ben Smith at Politico)