Republicans Hit Back At Obama Via Rezko

The McCain campaign and Republican National Committee are hitting back at the Obama campaign's offensive casting John McCain as out of touch.

The Obama campaign has today been aggressively spotlighting McCain's inability to say how many houses he owns – he and his wife reportedly own at least eight – and McCain's recent comment that someone would need an income of $5 million to be considered rich. (McCain's campaign later said McCain was joking.)

In an effort to push back, the McCain camp and RNC are drawing reporters' attention to Obama's connection to convicted political fundraiser Tony Rezko, which was widely reported when Rezko was on trial earlier this year. Obama was not accused of wrongdoing during the trial.

As Politico notes, the McCain campaign is preparing to launch a Web site focused on Obama's connections to Rezko. (UPDATE: And here it is. It comes from the RNC, not the McCain campaign, though the campaign did send it to reporters.)

And the RNC sent out an email today headlined "OBAMA'S HOUSING PROBLEM: Brought To You By Convicted Felon Tony Rezko." In it, the RNC notes that Obama paid $300,000 less than asking price for his home – which the RNC helpfully notes "Had Four Fireplaces And A Wine Cellar" – on the same day that Rezko's wife bought the vacant lot next door for asking price.

"Later, the Obamas bought a 10-foot-by-150-foot piece of the lot for $104,500," the Washington Post reported in a passage spotlighted by the RNC. "An appraisal put the value of the strip at $40,500, a spokesman said, but Obama considered it fair to pay one-sixth of the original price for one-sixth of the lot."

Rezko, an Obama friend and fundraiser who once offered the presumptive Democratic nominee a job, was convicted in June on corruption charges.