Presidential food gaffes
ISSUE NO. 31 // PRESIDENTIAL FOOD GAFFES
Way back in the Before Times…
I attended Bridget Watson Payne’s presentation Publishing For Creatives at a design conference. I had no plans to write a book, but there weren’t any other sessions that piqued my interest in that time slot so my friend Idaho Potato Murder Guy* and I soaked up her session and drew covers for books we had no plans to write (see above).
Imagine my surprise and delight when Bridget answered my call for POTUS Notice collaborators. I was downright starstruck!
This is a first: a guest I’ve actually been in the same room with AND she provided artwork for today’s newsletter. The cherry on top? After seeing a zine she made on Instagram, we added a print component as well.**
Grab a snack and let’s get to it…
Presidential Doodler
*Long story and completely irrelevant, but “potato” is part of today’s theme so here we are.
**If you received the printed zine but can’t figure out how to fold or refold it, scroll to the end. I made a little video! (If you don’t want to scroll, you can watch it here.)
6 Presidential Food Gaffes
(plus a bonus vice-POTUS gaffe!)
JFK Says He’s a Jelly Donut
The story goes that John F. Kennedy accidentally declared himself to be a jelly donut when he said “Ich bin ein Berliner” during a speech in West Berlin. There are some tricky German grammar rules at play here, but since Kennedy was saying he was like a Berliner in his heart, not that he literally lived in Berlin, he was in fact expressing his desired, rather nuanced, meaning with perfect grammatical correctness. As well he should have been since the sentence had been prepared for him by a native speaker.
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Gerald Ford Doesn’t Know How to Eat a Tamale
At a campaign stop in San Antonio while running for reelection, someone handed Gerald Ford a plate of tamales. Ford peeled back the tin foil wrapper, but not the inedible corn husk beneath, and attempted to take a bite. Some speculated the Great Tamale Incident—even more than other contributing factors such as opponent Jimmy Carter’s relatable Southern roots, or the Lone Star State’s well-known disgust with Nixon—that lost Ford Texas and its 26 electoral votes. Notably, that was the last time Texas went to a Democrat.
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Ronald Reagan Says Ketchup is a Vegetable
The legend goes that Ronald Reagan passed a law declaring ketchup to be a vegetable. What actually happened was that his administration spearheaded a 25% budget cut to federal school lunch programs, and the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Services scrambled to figure out how to feed as many kids as possible with a lot less money. The FNS proposed a bunch of ideas, but the one that got the most attention was a new rule that said states could include vegetable-based condiments “such as pickle relish” as part of the two required servings of fruits and vegetables. Though ketchup wasn’t mentioned specifically, it was easy to extrapolate that the sugary condiment would “count” as a veggie. There was a huge outcry. So huge that the proposal never went into effect.
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George Bush (the Elder) Hates Broccoli
George H. W. Bush made something of a shtick of his dislike of broccoli. There were reports he banned it from Air Force One, and shortly thereafter he gave his most quoted statement on the matter: “I do not like broccoli. And I haven't liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I'm President of the United States, and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli!” His statement was generally considered undignified and unhealthy. The Broccoli-Growers of California sent several truckloads of broccoli to the White House. Broccoli became known as “the vegetable of the 80s” and “a political vegetable.” While their husbands were on the campaign trail, Hillary Clinton and Tipper Gore held up a sign that read “Let’s put broccoli in the White House again.” George W. Bush even mentioned broccoli in his father’s eulogy.
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Dan Quayle Can’t Spell Potato
Visiting an elementary school spelling bee in 1992, Vice President Dan Quayle corrected a sixth-grader who had correctly spelled “potato”, telling him to “add a little to the end there.” According to an incorrect flashcard Quayle was given, it should be spelled “potatoe.” The student, William Figueroa, aged 12, summed up public perception: “It showed that the rumors about the vice president are true – that he's an idiot."
NOTE FROM HEATHER: Those of you who are familiar with my work know I’m in no position to judge Quayle. Not for his spelling, anyhow.
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Bill Clinton Eats Egg McMuffins
It was considered a serious problem that Bill Clinton liked McDonald’s. During his first presidential campaign, the media reported with gleeful derision on the supposed irony of the fact that he would often go for a morning jog and then stop for an Egg McMuffin. Clinton’s weight was a subject of intense scrutiny, under the banner of concerns for his health. At the same time, it was also fodder for comedy with Phil Hartman playing him on Saturday Night Live in a wildly popular sketch. Clinton made “a solemn vow” to eat better while president, and celebrated leaving office by going to get McDonald’s with Hillary. Least we think this all an artifact of the fat-shaming days of the 90s, the “isn’t it ironic” coverage continued well into the 2010s, around discussion of Clinton’s decision to go vegan in response to coping with heart disease.
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Barack Obama Orders Dijon Mustard
President Barack Obama ordered lunch at Ray’s Hell Burger in Arlington, Virginia: “I’m gonna have your very basic cheddar cheeseburger, medium-well. I just want mustard, no ketchup. You got a spicy mustard or something like that? Dijon mustard or something?” Right-wing commentators lost their minds. His desire for Dijon mustard (and, to a lesser degree, his spurning of the all-American condiment ketchup) was elitist and “fancy.” A news host called him “President Poupon” – likely confirmation that this “teacup tsunami” (as one observer called it) was in fact in large part inspired by 1980s Gray Poupon commercials that aligned the brand with luxury ("Pardon me, would you have any Grey Poupon?" "But of course!") – this despite the fact that it’s made by Kraft foods in America, and costs about as much more than French’s Yellow Mustard does as Budweiser does than Miller High Life.
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BRIDGET WATSON PAYNE is an editor, writer, and artist. For over twenty years she collaborated with hundreds of authors and artists at independent publisher Chronicle Books—now she works with publishers and authors as a freelance editor and creative consultant. She is the author of seven books, most recently How Time Is On Your Side. She has taught on CreativeLive, spoken at Alt Summit and Creative Mornings, and been featured on KTVU Mornings on 2, Cup of Jo, and Shondaland, among others. Bridget’s original artwork has appeared in several art shows and is available at Post.Script. She writes a popular bi-monthly newsletter and is hard at work on her next book. She lives in San Francisco with her family. She can be found on Instagram @watsonpayne or at bridgetwatsonpayne.com.
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HUNGRY FOR MORE? 🥦
LISTEN TO THIS PODCAST
The Bush vs. Broccoli episode of One Year: 1990 is amazing. You won’t be disappointed, I promise.
EXPLORE SOME OTHER FOOD GAFFES
A Brief History of Presidential Food Controversies
Bill de Blasio’s bagel gaffe and the fraught politics of food
CHECK OUT MY INDECISION … AT 541% SPEED!
See how the sausage is made, so to speak, in this :59 video.
Follow along on Instagram for more doodles and presidential trivia.
