It’s become increasingly clear that when it comes to weath John McCain simply doesn’t get it.  From his off the cuff $5 million = rich answer during Pastor Rick Warren’s Saddleback forum to his campaign’s failure to understand why the fact that he doesn’t remember how many houses he owns matters John McCain has become a walking definition of the out of touch rich elitist he spends so much time railing against.

For those of you who don’t know the background of today’s little nuclear bomb of furious accusations and threats to go negative (you mean McCain hasn’t already?) it basically boils down to this:

And what exactly was the McCain campaign’s response to this hard hitting talking point and potentially game-changing gaffe?  They went completely nuts.

McCain campaign spokesman Brian Rogers was ready with an equally forceful response evoking the neighbor of Obama’s, Tony Rezko, recently convicted for influence peddling: “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?” Rogers asks. “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.”

…

“In terms of who’s an elitist, I think people have made a judgment that John McCain is not an arugula-eating, pointy headed professor-type based on his life story.”

Someone should really tell Camp McCain that the first response when someone socks you in the nose (especially when it’s with your own words) isn’t to declare all-out war and throw the kitchen sink at your opponent.  That does two things:

1. It uses up any ammunition you may need for later if your attack doesn’t derail your opponent completely.  And here’s a hint, it won’t.  Not this time.
2. It makes you look desperate.  Really desperate.

So what is it McCain?  Is $4 million your new answer to the question, “how do you define rich?”?  Do you really think people care that, technically, your beer heiress wife owns the houses?  And do you really think trying to claim that “calling someone out” for eating arugula, an increasingly common food crop found in any decent sized grocery store, is anything but an immature school yard taunt?

Really?  Are you that pathetically desperate to hold on to the lie that you’re somehow one of us, one of the middle class “regular” folk, that this is what you lash out about?

You might want to save your energy McCain; it doesn’t look like Obama’s letting go of this one any time soon.