The Ranch House Dilemma
I’ve seen a lot of liberals giving John McCain a hard time about not knowing how many homes he owns. But this is a genuinely difficult question to answer! There’s the case of his two-for-one condo in Phoenix, for example. And there’s also the tricky question of McCain “Hidden Valley Ranch” house situation. The Cindy Hensley McCain Family Trust owns 11455 E Hidden Valley Road, 11445 E Hidden Valley Road, 11415 E Hidden Valley Road, and 11405 E Hidden Valley Road. But is that four properties or is it one property? What’s more, according to McCain there are six houses on the property. So that ranch situation could be anywhere from six houses to one house, depending on how you look at it. Combined with the condo situation, we’re now in the 2-7 house range.
UPDATE: And of course you have to consider the case of Meghan McCain’s loft in Phoenix. Her parents paid $700,000 for it and as a graduation present let her live there, but technically they’re the owners. Does that count as one of McCain’s houses or doesn’t it?
40 Responses to “The Ranch House Dilemma”
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August 21st, 2008 at 10:18 am
Do you get to spread your household income over all 2-7 houses? So if you’re super duper rich but have a super duper number of homes, does that make you only super rich according to your partitioned household income?
August 21st, 2008 at 10:22 am
Talk about a Housing crisis! Those poor McInsanes so many houses and so few fingers to count them with.
August 21st, 2008 at 10:32 am
Let them use toes!
August 21st, 2008 at 10:38 am
These houses were all gifts to John McCain from God in gratitude for John McCain’s support of Teh SURGE ™, which fixed all problems in Iraq, the Middle East, and everywhere forever.
August 21st, 2008 at 10:38 am
I’d love to ask him, since he can’t say how many homes he owns if he has more houses or more children?
For someone who the press tells us is so “well known,” most people seem genuinely surprised to find out how many kids (step-, bio-, adopted) he has. Which is genuinely odd for a “well known” presidential candidate.
August 21st, 2008 at 10:39 am
Worse, it sounds like some or all of those houses may be, y’know, hidden, further complicating matters.
August 21st, 2008 at 10:40 am
Oh no! Matt – it looks like you might have competition in owning this issue!
August 21st, 2008 at 10:44 am
Whew. He’s just like us after all. What a relief.
August 21st, 2008 at 10:44 am
Hidden Valley Ranch … isn’t that a trademark violation or something?
August 21st, 2008 at 10:52 am
If you had to live in a cage in ‘Nam for all those years, you’d want a lot of houses too!
August 21st, 2008 at 10:56 am
He should buy in sudden valley!
August 21st, 2008 at 10:59 am
Is Sweet Valley High a zone school for this home?
August 21st, 2008 at 11:00 am
As a mereological nihilist, I would argue that McCain doesn’t actually own any of his houses; what he actually owns are some yet to be discovered monistic particles that, in their entirely, make up these so called “houses.”
To go even further, McCain himself doesn’t exist: the fact is that the monistic particles that he consists of owns other monistic particles.
August 21st, 2008 at 11:06 am
The question is What would Jesus do?
Since he professes to be such a good Christian, why not let the homeless use all those empty homes when he or his wife aren’t?
I’d ask Rick Warren the same question. I’ll bet he has a few “extra” homes that could be put to good use by people in need.
August 21st, 2008 at 11:06 am
This post is snark, right?
August 21st, 2008 at 11:07 am
Hidden Valley Ranch
I swear if I had as much money as the Hensley family that I would come up with a better name than that for my estate.
Also, McCain does not “own” any houses. He is merely borrowing them from his descendents.
August 21st, 2008 at 11:12 am
Correction,
Her descendants. John McSame’s family had government provided housing, and health insurance. Unlike the rest of us.
August 21st, 2008 at 11:16 am
The answer to this gaffe I’m hearing is:
“Being rich isn’t going to hurt McCain. EVERYONE in this country wants to be rich. Being rich shows he is successful.”
This might work if McCain had been successful instead of dumping his first wife and marrying money being his road to success.
I guess he is successful at being a golddigger.
August 21st, 2008 at 11:17 am
Meghan McCain is a Trust Fund Scum Bag.
August 21st, 2008 at 11:25 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpmFd25tRqo&eurl=http://www.eschatonblog.com/
Awesome.
August 21st, 2008 at 11:26 am
“Houses are where one typically loses track one’s things, but not things one typically loses track of.”
August 21st, 2008 at 11:29 am
Bush was slightly more than halfway successful with the electorate b/c his rich but acts like Ty Webb. McCain, however, is clearly Judge Smails.
August 21st, 2008 at 11:46 am
Things that concern Matt: How many houses the McCain family has.
Things that should concern Matt: Why Obama launched his political career in the home of avowed and unrepentant terrorist Bill Ayers.
August 21st, 2008 at 12:21 pm
Eight years ago, then Governor George W. Bush revealingly joked about his backers at the 2000 Al Smith Dinner. “This is an impressive crowd – the haves and the have-mores,” Bush said, adding, “Some people call you the elites; I call you my base.” With his own quip Saturday night that “$5 million” is his definition of rich” and his uncertainty today over how many homes he owns, John McCain made no mistake that he is Bush’s natural heir.
For the details, see:
“The Haves,the Have Mores and John McCain.”
August 21st, 2008 at 1:31 pm
Let’s see, how did Obama get his own house? Wasn’t someone named Rezko involved? Is Rezko in prison yet, for his misdeeds?
Why does Obama want to open this can of worms??
August 21st, 2008 at 3:16 pm
Let’s see, how did Obama get his own house?
Pretty sure it was by selling a shitload of books. U.S. Attorney’s office in Illinois agrees with me, which is nice.
August 21st, 2008 at 3:16 pm
Did you just seriously argue the other day that the internet is really much better than traditional media, because, well, the internet has *links*! But alas it also has blogs with thousands of hits per day which ruminate endlessly on how to count and classify John McCain’s houses. Someone should start a blog entitled “You Can’t GET More Frivolous Than This”, just so we can all keep our bearings.
“But this is a genuinely difficult question to answer!”
Baloney it’s a difficult question to answer. For some outside observer there may be different ways to slice it, but there’s no way that McCain doesn’t have some specific way that *he* counts his houses. He has a ready number in his head, he’s just being evasive about it. Not that it’s really a legitimate question, anyway.
“Why does Obama want to open this can of worms??”
By ‘open this can of worms’ I guess you mean let Republicans think they have an excuse to lie about a house Obama paid full price for. “He said house! He said house! Can we unleash the troglodytes now?!” Is this what they stick the interns from Liberty University doing on the McCain campaign these days? Trolling liberal blogs?
August 21st, 2008 at 3:22 pm
McCain owns no homes. His wife does and their assets are held separately due to a prenup.
August 21st, 2008 at 3:31 pm
Things that should concern Jim-Bob: the fact that he’s a fucking tool.
August 21st, 2008 at 4:19 pm
Yes, I can definitely relate to McCain’s problem here. When I’m at the supermarket, trying to figure out if I can get into the express checkout with less than 10 items I’m never sure how to count multiples of the same item. Do those five cans of Campbells alphabet soup count as one item or five? Do those five houses on my Sedona ranch count as one home or five? Same thing, right? So how can anyone call McCain an elitist?
August 21st, 2008 at 4:51 pm
Oh, for God’s sake!!! I am lucky to share one with the bank. I guess this is what happens when you marry a rich woman and then become a corrupt poltician.
August 22nd, 2008 at 10:09 am
Actually Arizona is one of nine “community property” states regarding marriage. “In a community property state, the husband and wife are deemed to equally own all income and assets earned or acquired during the marriage.”
And although Cindy did make John sign a prenup agreement, most of, if not all, of the homes were acquired after marriage as Cindy sold the one home she grew up in where they lived for a number of years and which was featured in “Architectural Digest” back in 2005.
(Or if you just want to view the slidewhow of the “Architectural Digest” article.)
August 22nd, 2008 at 8:50 pm
Colatina-Obama didn’t pay full price for his mansion. Mrs. Rezko (a.k.a. Mrs. Felon and neighbor of the bonehead Obama) did on the property next door so maybe the Obamas would get a discount on theirs? You know, one hand washes the other.
There are Disclaimer Deeds recorded in which JSM disclaims any rights to the properties in question, including to his suite at the Hanoi Hilton and his rack on the U.S.S. Forrestal! Or, aren’t we counting those as his homes anymore?
Any truth to the rumor that Obama is planning to live in a cardboard box on the White House lawn so no one accuses him of losing touch with his constituents, which, if elected, is how we all will be living.
Also, would someone count for us the amount of confiscatory property and rental income taxes Cindy is paying on the properties???