Just who is this Joe Wilson guy anyway?

South Carolina Congressman Joe Wilson, who had been so lightly regarded that even this Palmetto State resident had never heard of him, put himself on the map with a two-word outburst during President Obama's speech on health care during last night's joint session of Congress.

To Obama's claim that the proposed national health care plan would not be available to illegal aliens, Wilson shouted out, "You lie!" from his seat.

The congressman became a heckler from the cheap seats, or even from the peanut gallery. Here's a story from Slate (beware of popups):

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said, "I have never in my 29 years heard an outburst of that nature with reference to a president of the United States speaking as a guest of the House and Senate," while White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel said, "No president has ever been treated like that. Ever." Is Obama really the first president to get heckled during an address to Congress? ... It depends on what you mean by heckle.

Wilson has since apologized, and Obama accepted the apology. But Newsweek columnist Kate Dailey penned an editorial calling Wilson a "healthcare hypocrite."

Cut the man some slack. He's passionate! I know this because he told me, in the sole message that blazes across his campaign Web site: JOE WILSON IS PASSIONATE ABOUT STOPPING GOVERNMENT RUN HEALTH CARE! ... except that he's not—at least not when it comes to his, and his family's, government-run health care. As a retired Army National Guard colonel, Wilson gets a lot of benefits (one of which, apparently, was not a full appreciation of the customs, traditions, and courtesies that mandate respect for one's commander in chief). And with four sons in the armed services, the entire Wilson brood has enjoyed multiple generations of free military medical coverage, known as TRICARE ... yes, it's true ...

As I mentioned, Wilson is a relative unknown among the 535 legislators who haunt the House and Senate, but this may change soon. In fact, you can call his extemporaneous outburst a career-maker and you won't be far off.

As an example, as I wrote this I looked up Wilson's official Congressional web site to get some background on the man -- like for starters, who is this guy? -- when I couldn't get very far:

Due to exceptionally high traffic, this site is temporarily unavailable ... please come back shortly.

Keep in mind, this was almost 20 hours after Wilson spoke his piece.

What's my take on Wilson's outburst? This is a tough one. Give him points for saying what needed to be said. In fact, this may have been the most intelligent thing uttered in the Capitol that day. But take every one of those points away -- plus a few more for good measure -- for Wilson blowing his cool. Despite all rumors and indications to the contrary, Congress is populated by adults having a serious discussion, with our national way of life at stake.

I guarantee you'll hear more of this Joe Wilson character. With a shout, he deep-sixed any idea of him being ignored. It's more than 15 minutes of fame for him.

Time will tell, though, whether he will become a force in Congress, or a farce.