John McSame's homes; eight and counting?
by Mark Silva and updated with RNC comment.
swamppolitics.com
DENVER - Here in the Big Tent of the Democratic Party, they're having no end of fun counting the homes of Republican Sen. John McCain.
The morning news brings word that the count is up: Eight.
Politico.com, which is where this conversation started - when McCain was asked how many homes he owns and he couldn't say - reports that initially it found seven when it made its own count. But now it has found a third condominium owned by the McCains in Phoenix, so that makes eight.
"I'll have my staff get to you,'' McCain had told Politico last week when the question was popped. "It's condominiums. I'll have them get to you.''
This prompted a chain-reaction of political house fires: Democrat Barack Obama proudly told a crowd that he only has one home, and what better proof could anyone find that McCain is "out of touch.'' Obama aired a TV ad about it. McCain responded rapidly with his own ad: Obama is the one with the "housing problem,'' the McCain ad warns - he acquired his home and expanded lot on the South Side of Chicago with the help of a later-convicted power broker, Tony Rezko.
"There is only one candidate that did not purchase a home with the assistance of a convicted felon,'' Danny Diaz, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee, told the Swamp today.
It's unclear who will win the war of the homes.
But on the real estate front, possession is nine tenths of the law. The score is McCain 8, Obama 1.
See Politifact's count of the McCains' eight homes:
"1. The largest home is a creekside ranch near Sedona, Ariz., spread over more than six acres. That's where McCain entertained vice presidential prospects, including Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, over Memorial Day weekend. Records from Yavapai County Assessor's Office show it includes three houses and is worth about $1.1-million. CNN reported that McCain said there are six houses on the property. The owner is listed as the Cindy Hensley McCain Family Trust. If McCain is correct that there are six houses on the property and you counted each one, the total homes owned would rise to 13 (though again, when pressed by Politico about properties, McCain said he wasn't sure).
"2. and 3. In nearby Phoenix, Cindy McCain owns two combined condo units worth about $1.7-million. They're part of the Residences at 2211 Camelback, which bills itself as "The Valley of the Sun's finest example of life beyond the expected" at "the most preferred urban residential address in the prestigious Camelback Corridor." Wild River Rental LLC, which records show is controlled by Cindy McCain, owns another unit in the building, which was purchased in 2007 for $830,000. (This is the unit we missed in our first go round.)
"4. In Arlington, Va., the McCains live in a three-bedroom high-rise condo worth $847,800, property records show.
"5. They also own a condo in La Jolla, Calif., that's worth more than $1-million. The building overlooks a park and the Pacific Ocean.
Records also link the McCains to three other residences.
"6. Wild River Rental LLC, the company controlled by Cindy McCain, is listed as the owner of Phoenix condo worth more than half a million dollars. The McCains bought the condo for their daughter Meghan, according to a story in GQ magazine and confirmed through a public records search. The reporter compared the inside to "a spaceship furnished by West Elm. There's a giant silver chimney that extends out of her fireplace into the ceiling about twenty feet above."
"7. and 8. Dream Catcher Family LLC, a domestic corporation formed by the McCain family, owns two condos in a beachfront complex in Coronado, Calif. Tax records show one is valued at $2.7-million. The other was purchased this year, according to sales records. A sales price was not available.'' |
