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CBS News' Ward Sloane passes along word of an anti-Obama blast fax that just arrived into the DC newsroom. Here's what it said:

"Now isn't this something to think about! If Barack Obama would apply for a job with the FBI or with the Secret Service, he would be disqualified because of his past association with William Ayers, a known terrorist. If he is elected President he would not qualify to be his own body guard!"

There was no identification or trace on the fax.

As it turns out, the Web site PolitiFact recently looked into this allegation after receiving a chain email that made the same claim. The FBI and Secret Service did not comment on whether the claim was accurate, but the site spoke to outside experts to ascertain its truthfulness.

And their conclusion was that it is not true. Obama, the experts said, would not have to disclose his (relatively tenuous) connection to Ayers, since he was not a member of the former Weatherman's organization and did not engage in terrorist activities.

But the relationship could still come up in a background investigation...

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In a speech in Pennsylvania this morning, John McCain said that Barack Obama and the Obama campaign have been attacking Joe Wurzelbacher, better known as "Joe the Plumber," the Ohio man whom McCain repeatedly referenced during the third presidential debate and has been citing on the campaign trail.

"Now, Joe didn't ask for Senator Obama to come to his house, and he didn't ask to be famous," McCain said. "And he certainly didn't ask for the political attacks on him from the Obama campaign." This prompted cheers from the crowd.

"Joe's dream is the American dream to own a small business that will create jobs, and the attacks on him are an attack on small businesses all over this nation," McCain added. "We're not going to stand for it."

Wurzelbacher has criticized the media for its treatment of him, suggesting that the press corps is worried about issues such as whether he's paid his taxes and "any number of silly things that have nothing to do with America." But asked on Fox News yesterday if he blamed either of the campaigns for how he was depicted, Wurzelbacher said he did not.

"Oh, no, no, I think the media pretty much did that all by themselves," he said. "You know, I don't think -- I held no animosity towards either of one them, by no means. No.”

I asked the McCain campaign for specific examples of what it considered attacks on Wurzelbacher from Obama and the Obama campaign. "Their campaign has been moving dirt on Joe and their allies in the press and liberal blogs have been going after him," McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said in an email.

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