Barack Obama’s campaign wasted no time in releasing an ad to capitalize on John McCains recent statement that he does not recall how many houses he owns. The ad claims McCain owns seven houses worth 13 million dollars, and the American people cannot afford to let him move into another house (while picturing the White House).

The actual number of house owned by John McCain? None! Despite Obama’s attempts to paint McCain as a rich white man out of touch witht he American people, John McCain himself does not own one single home:

John McCain’s family owns at least eight properties — not the seven Democrats are alleging or the four McCain’s staff identified — according to a Politico analysis of property and tax records, as well as interviews.

The presumptive Republican nominee, though, may have some wiggle room in explaining why he couldn’t immediately provide an answer when asked by Politico how many houses he and his wife, Cindy, own. Sen. McCain himself does not own any of the properties. They’re all owned by Cindy McCain, her dependent children and the trusts and companies they control. …

Politico’s analysis of the McCain records found that five of the eight properties were purchased between the summer of 2004 and this February, for a total of $11 million. And the analysis found that the McCains hired additional household help in 2007.

The five new properties are all condominiums, and they include three in Phoenix — one of which became the couple’s primary Phoenix residence after a Cindy McCain family trust in 2006 sold for $3.2 million the house in which they raised their children — and a pair outside San Diego.
The new properties joined three previously owned by Cindy McCain, her dependent children and their trusts: a scenic ranch outside Sedona, Ariz., where John McCain has entertained staff, prospective running mates and political reporters; a three-bedroom Arlington, Va., condo that’s been John McCain’s Washington-area residence since 1993; a La Jolla, Calif. condo that is home to Cindy McCain’s elderly aunt and on which the trust recently paid nearly $7,000 in back taxes.

John McCain and Cindy McCain have seperate finances, and a pre-nutpial agreement in place, meaning and properties owned by Cindy McCain or her trusts, are not technically the property of John McCain as would be the case in a more traditional marriage.

Ed Morrissey:

No doubt, McCain’s clumsy answer gave Obama room to poke fun at him as rich and out of touch at the same time. However, McCain himself doesn’t own any property and isn’t “rich”, and Cindy and her family earned their money honestly. They certainly didn’t partner with a now-convicted political fixer to buy a house in a tony neighborhood.

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Barack Obama, Dumb Dems, Election 2008, John McCain, Politics, Video