Posted on 01/05/2017 4:49:16 PM PST by drewh
The First Lady is Adopting a New, Highly-Ideological Anti-Hunger Campaign with Left-Wing Activist Group
Jeff Stier of the National Center for Public Policy Research Says First Lady's Planned Ad Campaign for Left-Wing Food Activist Group Will Divide Americans Rather Than Feed Hungry
Michelle Obama's Partnership With Activist Celebrity Chef Tom Colicchio Puts Minimum Wage and Organic Farming Issues Ahead of Fighting Hunger
New York, NY / Washington, D.C. - First Lady Michelle Obama this week gave a major clue to her post-White House approach to public service. She's decided to partner with the far left-wing Food Policy Action Education Fund, a sister organization of Food Policy Action.
Politico reports Mrs. Obama "is featured in a commercial being unveiled [Wednesday] as part of a new, national anti-hunger campaign being launched by Food Policy Action Education Fund, a sister organization of Food Policy Action. The three-year campaign, dubbed 'A Place at the Table,' is backed by $300 million in donated media, including TV, digital and print. The campaign follows in the footsteps of the documentary 'A Place at the Table,' a documentary that FPA co-founder Tom Colicchio helped produce."
Politico also reports the film was co-directed by Tom Colicchio's wife, Lori Silverbush.
Willy Ritch, former communications director for Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), a leading demagogue in the fight to politicize food, will manage the nationwide campaign.
Jeff StierThe National Center for Public Policy Research's director of Risk Analysis, Jeff Stier, laments the news, saying, "By partnering with a radically left-wing activist group, rather than an organization focused on feeding hungry people, the First Lady further politicizes an issue that should be above partisan politics."
In fact, says Stier, "'A Place at the Table' is an ironically poor name for a campaign about an issue for which everyone who wants to feed hungry people should have a seat at the table."
Stier points out the abundance of organizations which successfully put politics aside to bring people together in the fight against hunger.
According to Stier, "Ms. Obama would have been wise to highlight groups such as No Kid Hungry, sponsor of the Cooking Matters program, which teaches families how to 'shop for and cook healthy meals on a budget,' or any of the countless faith-based groups in which individuals from all backgrounds heroically come together daily to provide meals to people in need in their communities."
Instead, says Stier, "The outgoing First Lady decided to partner with a divisive group and cloak it in a do-good feed-the-hungry campaign."
Chef Tom Colicchio's political action committee is known for creating the "Food Policy Action Scorecard," which scores lawmakers on how liberal they vote on food issues.
Food Policy Action says the scorecard grades legislators on whether they "Promote policies that support healthy diets, reduce hunger at home and abroad, improve food access and affordability, uphold the rights and dignity of food and farm workers... and reduce the environmental impact of farming and food production.'"
But in a National Review op-ed with food writer Julie Kelly in 2015, Stier wrote, "The implication is that members of Congress who don't agree with Colicchio and his leftist cohort oppose healthy food and the reduction of hunger and are indifferent to degradation of the environment."
Stier points out that "FPA supports big-government programs including mandatory GMO labeling, so-called 'sustainable farming,' raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour for most workers by 2020; all of which will increase the cost of food, hurting the hungry the most."
On the scorecard, Democrat lawmakers usually score between 80% and 100%, while Republicans are usually rated in the 20% to 30% range.
Stier told the Washington Post in 2013 that "there's a good reason for Republican lawmakers' performance on the scorecard." It does not, as FPA claims, "reflect the consensus of top food policy experts.' Rather, it represents the narrow views of a select group of some of the nation's most ideologically divisive activists."
Stier says, "While Americans should applaud Mrs. Obama for highlighting the issue of hunger, we should put aside her half-baked approach to partnering with ideologues to address the problem."
"Instead, particularly on this issue" says Stier, "we should transcend politics and come together to feed those in need."
Follow Jeff Stier on Twitter at @JeffaStier to be alerted to his future commentaries, publications and appearances relating to food issues.
The National Center for Public Policy Research, founded in 1982, is a non-partisan, free-market, independent conservative think-tank. Ninety-four percent of its support comes from individuals, less than four percent from foundations, and less than two percent from corporations. It receives over 350,000 individual contributions a year from over 96,000 active recent contributors. Follow us on Twitter at @NationalCenter for general announcements. To be alerted to upcoming media appearances by NationalCenter staff, follow our media appearances Twitter account at @NCPPRMedia.
-30-
Follow the money
Michelle obama CAUSED hunger in our public schools wth her school lunch “reform” program!!!!
I think that it would be wise for her to stay TOTALLY away from food and hunger issues!!!!
Why don’t the obamas move to Somalia and leave us all alone? PHOOEY!!!!
women and minorities hardest hit.
thats how you do it.
Melania should head up a 501c3 faith based group to feed the hungry. And sic the justice department on Coliccio and Stiers. Their radical leftist group will go bye bye.
Are they obese or going hungry? It's hard to follow leftist propaganda.
IF you can NOT feed them:
Do NOT breed them!!!
Quit begging me to contribute to someone’s poor choices.
Flame away-—I am tired of every single day & night on TV being begged to contribute food-—even in my mailbox!!!
I take care of what is mine-—Your guilt trips don’t work in this household.
Is she getting paid? If so, why is she in an ad on Friday while OBama is still in office. THe left would yell Conflict!
Wonder if she will get $10 mill a year for her deluxe vacations? While traveling to world taking photo ops with hungry people
I don’t give a crap what she does— Just get OUT!!
Will he be doing it as Michelle or as Michael?
Not the school diet crap she demands schoolkids eat.
I mean the good stuff that we have been feeding her for 8 years - All-You-Can-Eat lobster with drawn butter, Kobe steak etc.
You can't get a world class gut like hers on dry arugula and fat free soy curds.
Is she getting a salary for not showing up like she did at the University Of Chicago Hospital?
Why doesn’t she try a water diet for a couple of months? Or maybe a six month fugu diet?
If Moochie would stop trying to force feed people that God awful arugula and stop hogging the feed bag herself, hunger would be half way solved.
I don’t give a damn what Moochie does after she leaves the White House I just want to put FOOD back into schools that the kids can eat and feel satisfied......be it french fries and cheeseburgers, mac and cheese, pizza or whatever!!! FEED THE CHILDREN........;)
Michelle is going to fight hunger...that is almost as funny as Oprah owning Weight Watchers.
She’ll be eating organic cavier?
Here’s an idea for Mooch:
Go on a hunger strike and announce that you won’t stop til “rescued” by Ronald Reagan!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
