Here’s an interesting development in the class wars from today’s Washington Post.

On the op-ed page, Richard Cohen takes this shot at Bill Kristol (emphasis added):

Especially in the Weekly Standard, Palin was acclaimed as a tribune of the people. As for her critics, they were dismissed as “liberal media” types who were not, like conservative editors and TV commentators, one with the people. Kristol hit this theme hard, having somehow absorbed Wal-Mart sensitivities while living most of his life in either New York or Washington where, as I can personally attest, real Americans are encountered only when summoned to carry out home repairs. You can learn a lot this way.

Could Cohen be implying that Kristol really is country club Republican?

Probably matters how you define country club Republican.

Fortunately, the Post provides that definition — in its news pages.

From the Post’s coverage today of the Oregon Senate race and Gordon Smith (emphasis added):

Smith, looking the part of a country club Republican in a blue blazer and bright yellow sweater vest, addressed reporters from a lectern labeled “Democrats for Smith.” Two of the 22 registered Democrats flanking him sported Obama pins.

So, if we’re to believe the Washington Post, all you need to be a country club Republican is a yellow sweater?  Well, if the below yellow sweater-wearer is any indication, just one more question: where do we sign up?

First John Kerry ….

Then John McCain …

Now, Jeff Merkley …

Howard Kurtz posed these question on Sunday’s “Reliable Sources”:

• “Are reporters all but ignoring the Biden blunders?”
• “Is the media’s treatment of Palin fair, especially when compared to that of Biden?”
• (in response to Biden saying the six months/world tests comment) “That was a remarkable thing for a running mate to say. And yet, it got 20 seconds on a couple of evening newscasts. It was kind of an item in a lot of newspapers. Why wasn’t it a bigger story?”
• “Now, is what’s at play here the fact that most reporters have known Joe Biden for a long time, kind of like the guy? They know he’s smart, and so they’re saying, oh, it’s just Joe, we don’t really have to give him a hard time because it doesn’t indicate any lack of knowledge?”

And this statement: “Joe Biden has not taken questions from his traveling press corps since September 10th, and nobody is making an issue out of it.”

Good point, good questions.  Of course, if you put Biden in front of the media there’s always the risk he might do something like this again …

Joe Biden says this about John McCain:

“I know Halloween is coming, but John McCain as a candidate of change? Whoa, come on! John McCain and change? He needs a costume for that.”

But who needs a costume of Joe Biden?

Find out by clicking here …

We learn this from today’s Washington Post profile of the Al Franken-Norm Coleman race:

Franken campaigned Tuesday as if he were an old farmhand. Sen. Tom Harkin (D), the Agriculture Committee chairman from neighboring Iowa, appeared at the diner to promise Franken a seat on his committee. Franken took notes on a yellow pad as the farmers discussed biofuel production and, in vowing more funding for wind farms, he informed them that the state’s 1st Congressional District is the sixth windiest in the nation.

We are now sufficiently curious — what are the top five windiest CDs in the nation?

If you’ve got a list, send it in.

Meantime, here’s an old National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration list of the top ten windiest U.S. cities:

1.  Blue Hill MA
2.  Dodge City KS
3.  Amarillo TX
4.  Rochester MN
5.  Cheyenne WY
6.  Caspar WY
7.  Great Falls MT
8.  Goodland KS
9.  Boston MA
10. Lubbock TX

The results of the latest Winthrop/ETV Poll, conducted among likely voters in NC, VA and SC between Sept. 28 and Oct. 19, are in — and show extraordinarily tight races in Virginia and North Carolina.

Virginia:

McCain 43.6%

Obama 44.6%

North Carolina:

McCain  44.2%
Obama  44.6%

When was the last time these two southern states were election night nail biters?  Campaign 2008 may come down to the two neighbors.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is distributing this video on card check in targeted Senate races…

Joe Biden’s three-letter word — jobs.

(spotted at Instapundit)

It was bound to happen — a Joe the Plumber fan page on Facebook:

“Joe the Plumber” represents all hard working Americans who dream of increasing their personal wealth so they can provide for their families, help those in need and save for their future…without government assistance.

When we read this news …

Joe the Plumber said Thursday he doesn’t have a license and doesn’t need one. Joe Wurzelbacher, better known as Joe the Plumber, the nickname Republican John McCain bestowed on him during Wednesday’s presidential debate, said he works for a small plumbing company that does residential work. Because he works for someone else, he doesn’t need a license, he said.

… we immediately thought that this opens the poor guy up for attack, that somehow his fears of higher taxes would be discounted by detractors questioning his plumbing skills.  Then we remembered this great “Saturday Night Live” skit from the early glory days and felt immense relief.

Ambassador Training Institute

Husband … Dan Aykroyd
Wife … Laraine Newman
Pitchman … Andrew Duncan

[In a kitchen, a wife serves her husband dinner.]

Husband: [disgruntled] Sandwiches again tonight?

Wife: You know I can’t stretch the food budget any further! Why don’t you get a better job?

[Through the magic of Chroma-Key technology, a pitchman appears - superimposed over this kitchen scene - and addresses the camera.]

Pitchman: Are you stuck in a go-nowhere, do-nothing job? If so, this is your chance to start an exciting career in the world of international diplomacy as an ambassador to a foreign country — by enrolling now at the Ambassador Training Institute.

[After a glimpse of the ATI logo (a shield with an eagle, a dollar bill, and a crossed knife and fork), we dissolve to stock footage of horse-drawn carriages, diplomats shaking hands, tables laden with food, etc.]

Ambassadors live in luxury and get to mingle with glamorous celebrities, royalty, and the social elite. And they don’t have to pick up after themselves. Ambassadors have a lot of prestige and influence. They put in long hours without working hard. And they’re often the center of attention. And the food? Fantastic! Ambassadors dine on the finest gourmet food at big fancy dinner parties in palaces, in embassies and trade centers.

[Back to the pitchman.]

To see if you qualify for a career in diplomacy, take this easy test, right now, in the privacy of your own home. Listen closely. You are having dinner with some foreign dignitaries and someone says something anti-American. You:

(A) Shoot him and create an international incident.

(B) Pretend you did not hear it and ask him to pass the sweet and sour shrimp.

You’d be surprised how many people say “A” — but if you said “B,” then you have the ability to make quick decisions on your feet. When you enroll at Ambassador Training Institute, you’ll learn how to accept gifts graciously, how to propose toasts. You’ll use phrases like: “Delighted to see you again!” “I’ll ask the Secretary of State.” and “Pass the sweet and sour shrimp.”

Now, here’s how to get your free booklet. Just send three hundred thousand dollars and the name of the country to which you’d like to be ambassador to: Illegal Campaign Contributions, Ambassador Training Institute, Mexico City, Mexico.

Of course, going to ambassador school and getting a plumbing licenses might not be entirely comparable.  But heck, if having a license means you’ve earned lower taxes, then let’s pass these suckers out to everyone …