They say food brings people together, but when those people are politicians and the voters they're trying to win over — often the opposite is true. New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, one of the many Democrats running for president in 2020, faced an onslaught of criticism for eating fried chicken with a fork during a recent campaign stop in South Carolina. Before her, New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, and citizen Donald Trump back in 2011, all committed the heinous crime of eating pizza with utensils. Not to mention the time then President Barack Obama ate his ice cream cone with a spoon — what's the cone for?
For politicians on the campaign trail, it seems catastrophe is always on the menu.
To discuss food on the campaign trail, Jim Braude is joined by Frederick Opie, a professor of history and foodways at Babson College.
