Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill appeared on today's Morning Joe, where she offered up a vigorous defense of Barack Obama and Joe Biden, who've been recently accused of espousing Communism in the aftermath of l'affaire de Joe the Plumber. McCaskill, saying that these accusations amounted to the opposition "pouncing" on a "slip," clarified over and over again that the Obama campaign was merely talking about using the tax code to strengthen the middle class. Ultimately, host Joe Scarborough pretty much came to McCaskill's aid, suggesting, "Could it just be that he's been inartful with the words he's been using and should he just say, we want to return the tax code to where it was in 2001?" McCaskill admitted, "I wouldn't have said it that way, and I wish he wouldn't have said it that way, but the bottom line is, he said over and over and over again the right way."
Later in the segment, Scarborough asked McCaskill if Obama expected to win Missouri by more or less than five points. "Definitely less," McCaskill replied, "In Missouri, one point is a landslide."
[WATCH.]
BRZEZINSKI: Here with us now national co-chair of the Obama campaign, Democratic Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill. Thank you Senator, for being with us. We appreciate your coming on the show. Let's talk about this comment Barack Obama made - he made it to Joe the Plumber and other venues - about spreading the wealth. No one's calling him a Marxist, that's not what we're doing, but the question certainly was put to Joe Biden and he didn't like this. Isn't it Marxist dialect, should we be concerned about a candidate who's considering redistribution of wealth.
MCCASKILL: Well, no, because he's not. What we're talking about the tax code and who gets tax cuts. One candidate wants to give tax cuts to the same people that George Bush gave tax cuts to - very wealthy people, corporations - Barack Obama wants to give tax cuts to working people, the middle class and small businesses. It's not redistribution of wealth, it's called tax cuts for working people.
BRZEZINSKI: But would you say that -- when Barack Obama talks about spreading the wealth and I'm also looking at audio of him on redistribution of wealth, he talked to a Chicago public radio station about, would you talk this way to your constituents in Missouri. Can you see why people are starting to use names and be concerned and even use the word socialist.
MCCASKILL: First of all they are using those names because they are behind in the election, and the election is a week away. That's why they're doing the name calling. As long as as we've had a tax code, we've encouraged certain behavior and done tax cuts. But what we're saying is in the Obama campaign, isn't it time that we strengthen the middle class, that's always been the strength of our economy, Mika, it's why we have been stronger than other nations, we've had consumer power of a middle class. It's time we strengthen and stretch that middle class, it has been shrinking under George Bush, it's been about the haves and have-nots. People in working families, who are out there doing two jobs, struggling with health care and gas prices, giving them a break on their taxes makes more sense than giving another break to Paris Hilton.
BRZEZINSKI: Joe Scarborough?
SCARBOROUGH: That's a bumper sticker, no more tax cuts for Paris Hilton.
MCCASKILL: There you go.
SCARBOROUGH: It's interesting though. You had Joe Biden when he got upset about the question saying Barack Obama is not talking about spreading the wealth when that's exactly what he said to Joe the Plumber. You just said he's not talking about the redistribution of wealth when those are his exact words to the Chicago public radio station. Could it just be that he's been inartful with the words he's been using and should he just say, we want to return the tax code to where it was in 2001?
MCCASKILL: He said that over and over again, but everyone is looking for some kind of slip, some kind of code, something they can use to make --
SCARBOROUGH: These are his own words, redistribution of wealth, Barack Obama's own words, spreading the wealth, his own words. Can't you just say maybe he shouldn't have said that.
MCCASKILL: I wouldn't have said it that way, and I wish he wouldn't have said it that way, but the bottom line is, he said over and over and over again the right way. He said a thousand times, build the middle class to one or two times where he said it some way that everybody pounced on. This is about the tax code.
SCARBOROUGH: Final question, Claire, does Barack Obama win Missouri by more or less than five points?
MCCASKILL: Definitely less. I'm on my way from here. I'm leaving for a three-day tour on an RV of rural Missouri. If we can get the margins up in sometimes red very rural Missouri, it's going to be close in Missouri. In Missouri, one point is a landslide.
SCARBOROUGH: No doubt about it, Senator. Thank you so much for being with us. We appreciate it and good luck riding the RV across Missouri.