Why Obama Eats Junk Food
The Health Conscience Commander-in-Chief Eats Junk Food in Public
June 26, 2012 -- If there's a common theme in President Obama's travels around the country it's this: the man eats a lot of junk food.
Here he is on Monday in Durham, New Hampshire digging into a hot fudge sundae.
On Tuesday, he made an unannounced stop at a fast food joint outside of Atlanta where he ordered five chili dogs, four regular dogs and one hamburger. Not just for himself but for his staff.
Read more about campaign trail calories HERE and see Obama order a chili dog HERE
Is the famously health-conscious exerciser-in-chief a hypocrite? Or is he boxed into a no-win situation when it comes to eating in front of his fellow citizens?
The minute he chomps into a salad on the trail, he'll surely be attacked as an elitist who's more in touch with the price of arugula than the cost of ground beef or frozen chicken tenders.
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Plus, when it comes to dining, few American cities are defined by their healthier fare. Instead, everyone raves about the cheese curds in Milwaukee, the chicken wings in Buffalo and the cheesecake in Chicago. To spend time in Philadelphia means you MUST eat a cheesesteak. And, of course, it must be smothered in Cheez Whiz, not some namby-pamby "foreign" cheese like Swiss.
Even in the midst of an obesity epidemic, it is still considered "unmanly," especially for a man who happens to be the leader of the free world, to be seen eating tofu or a veggie wrap. Heck, it's barely gotten to the point where it's at least acceptable for a man to drink a diet soda.
Plus, what a president eats says something about how he sees the future prospects for the country. Ice cream cone = sunshine and happy days. Wheat-grass smoothie = more scrimping and belt-tightening on the horizon.
Which brings us back to the other slice of reality: more Americans can be found at hot dog stands and pizza joints than in the Whole Foods produce section or at a vegetarian buffet line. And, that, of course, reminds us of why we Americans are, well, the shape that we are in.
