John McCain, campaigning at the Maxwell C. King Center in Melbourne, Fla.,says his rival cannot be trusted to cut taxes.

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MIAMI — Republican John McCain told crowds in this battleground state Friday to "hold onto your wallet" because his Democratic presidential rival, Barack Obama, has talked of spreading the wealth around.

McCain suggested voters could not rely on Obama's promise of tax cuts while returning once more to the story of "Joe the plumber," a regular part of McCain's speeches since the Arizona senator first mentioned the tax concerns of an Ohio plumber, Samuel J. Wurzelbacher, in Wednesday's presidential debate.

Florida was McCain's first stop on a two-day tour through states, including North Carolina and Virginia, where he has surrendered his lead in polls during the past month.

Last Sunday as Obama walked through Wurzelbacher's Holland, Ohio, neighborhood, Wurzelbacher asked him whether his plan to increase taxes on those earning more than $250,000 a year would impede his ability to buy the plumbing company where he works. Obama replied that those making over $250,000 would be taxed more but that money would be returned to the middle-class through tax cuts. "I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody," Obama said.

The McCain campaign seized on that remark.

"When politicians talk about taking your money and spreading it around, you'd better hold onto your wallet," McCain told a Miami rally crowd. "Sen. Obama claims that he wants to give a tax break to the middle class, but not only did he vote for higher taxes for the middle class in the Senate, his plan gives away your tax dollars to those who don't pay taxes. That's not a tax cut; that's welfare."

McCain, who bestowed the nickname "Joe the plumber" on Wurzelbacher during the debate, claimed Friday that "the response from Sen. Obama and his campaign yesterday was to attack Joe."

In fact, Obama and his running mate, Joe Biden, and their campaign have barely mentioned Wurzelbacher. Obama and Biden both attacked McCain for portraying Wurzelbacher as representative of most blue-collar workers, asking how many plumbers make $250,000 a year.

Nonetheless, McCain elicited boos from a fired-up crowd when he said of Wurzelbacher: "People are digging through his personal life, and he has TV crews camped out in front of his house. He didn't ask Sen. Obama to come to his house. He wasn't recruited or prompted by our campaign. He just asked a question. And Americans ought to be able to ask Sen. Obama tough questions without being smeared and targeted with political attacks."

News organizations eager to learn more about Wurzelbacher did besiege his house Thursday and discovered and reported that he lacks a plumbing license and owes back taxes.

During an appearance Friday evening in the Space Coast community of Melbourne, McCain revealed that he had spoken to Wurzelbacher for the first time earlier in the day.

"I want to tell you his spirits are good and he's a tough guy. He's what small-business people all over this country are about," McCain said to cheers. He encouraged the crowd, "Send Joe an e-mail and tell him you're with him."

A McCain aide said later that the senator discussed having Wurzelbacher campaign with him, but she couldn't recall any conclusion being reached during their conversation. "We'll be in Toledo on Sunday," said aide Brooke Buchanan. Toledo is near Wurzelbacher's hometown.

Election