I was interested to learn from Obama’s memoir—because keep in mind I was a lad during his campaign in ’07—that apparently John McCain, his republican opponent, alienated some voters when he was asked in an interview, kind of offhandedly, “How many houses do you own?”

            Dude: he didn’t know.

            Turns out the answer was eight—which is pretty nuts, and maybe I sound like a communist in saying that, but, form what I’ve read, this is the kinda shit that causes housing crises and drives up rent in the surrounding area—and also, fuck, there’s no way in hell that you can sensibly divide your time across eight houses. If you’re rich enough to own eight houses, it means you’re rich enough to own three houses and then stay in luxury hotels whenever you feel like visiting those other five places.

            Or maybe he was like a landlord of those houses and renting them out?

            I don’t know, and I certainly don’t mean to vilify him. I just mean to point out that it’s awakened my…inner something. And made me wonder about the extent to which I and the broader public might be bothered by a candidate’s wealth.

            It’s just hard to look at someone with eight houses and think, “That guy gets me.”