In a late-game "Joe the Plumber" moment, another manual laborer is making the rounds as spokesman for the little guy.
Mitt Romney's garbage man appears in a new ad criticizing the Republican candidate.
"We're kind of like the invisible people," says Hayes. "He doesn't realize the service we provide."
Hayes explains that trash pickup--a service provided by the government and funded by taxes--prevents health issues, before the clip cuts to Romney advocating smaller government.
The short ad juxtaposes Hayes, who speaks about the physical rigors of his daily work, with clips from Romney's now-infamous "47 percent" speech. Hayes explains that his body will fall apart by the time he is 55 or 60 years old.
"Mitt Romney doesn't care about that," he concludes, as the ad fades to Romney saying, "My job is not to worry about those people."
The obvious implication is that Mitt Romney doesn't care about the viewer, either. The ad's impact and persuasiveness likely depends on the extent that the viewer identifies with Hayes, a heavy-set African American man with a well-trimmed beard and a soft demeanor.
The ad was created by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, a 1.6 million member union of nurses, emergency medical responders and sanitation workers.
Technically, Hayes is only one of Romney's garbage men, as Hayes serves the community of La Jolla, Calif., the location of one of Romney's three houses, a $12 million beachfront property.
President Obama owns one home, in Chicago, not counting the White House, which Romney hopes to add to his collection come November.