The House I Live In

As long as Bob Casey Jr. has gone to the trouble to show signs of life, I feel that I should say something on his behalf.

Apparently, the august Philadelphia "newspaper of record" on North Broad Street thinks the whole home mortgage controversy between Casey and Santorum is one big joke (though I will grant that there are many more issues of greater importance, such as Santorum's significant role in the "K" Street project). However, I'd like to point out some things about this story which, apparently, aren't of importance to the Inquirer while they continue to tilt to the right (they'd better hope and pray nothing happens to Trudy Rubin since, with the departure of Jane Eisner, every other editorial feature writer on the paper whose work they publish these days is nothing but a right-wing shill).

As noted in this Inquirer story by Carrie Budoff, the mortgage amount in question for Santorum's home was $500,000 for a property with an estimated value of $643,000 (WAY too rich for my blood, of course).

However, as noted in this story in the Bucks County Courier Times (from Kimberly Hefling of the AP, and yes there actually IS a story there...you may have to scroll WAY down for it), Casey's mortgage is for $120,000 for a home with an estimated value of $92,000 (a lot closer to my price range - and by the way, how clever of the AP to not mention the amount of Santorum's mortgage as opposed to Casey's).

What gets me the most about this is that everyone overlooks the following facts: Casey's primary residence is in Scranton, Pa., and Santorum's is in Leesburg, Va. How much do you want to think the "liberal media" would be screaming if those locations were reversed?

Update: I didn't know Atrios and the blogger Suburban Guerilla were already on this, but I shouldn't have been surprised.