Joe the Plumber berates Israeli press for not being patriotic enough

An Israeli Government Press Office handout photograph showing 'Joe the Plumber' in Sderot, Israel

Fledgling war correspondent Samuel Wurzelbacher visits Israel's frontline city of Sderot but says he can't think of the right question

Guardian

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Joe the Plumber – aka Samuel Wurzelbacher, made famous by challenging Barack Obama's tax plans – has begun his new job as a reporter covering the Gaza war by berating the Israeli press for not being patriotic enough.

The fledgling war correspondent for Pajamas Media website spent his first day on the job in the frontline Israeli city of Sderot, which has borne the brunt of Hamas rocket attacks. He said he had rarely seen such suffering.

"The people of Sderot can't do normal things day to day, like get soap in their eyes in the shower, for fear a rocket might come in," he said. "I'm sure they're taking quick showers. I know I would."

Wurzelbacher said he thought foreign criticism of Israel's actions in Gaza was misplaced.

"When someone hits me, I'm going to unload on the boy. And if the rest of the world doesn't understand that, then I'm sorry," he said.

And then he rounded on the Israeli reporters whose newspapers have been criticised by some as no better than cheerleaders for the war. Wurzelbacher thought they hadn't been supportive enough.

"It makes me sick to see the way you behave. You guys need to be protective of your homes, your children, your family," he said.

Having answered a few questions himself, Joe the Plumber was suddenly called on to get back to being a reporter.

"I have thousands of questions but I can't think of the right one," he said.