That remark didn't square well with her fellow Republican and "friend" Mike Huckabee who disputed the put-down on the Curtis Silwa Show on Tuesday. "With all due respect to my colleague and friend Sarah Palin, I think she's misunderstood what Michelle Obama is trying to do," he said. "Michelle Obama's not trying to tell people what to eat or not trying to force the government's desires on people. She’s stating the obvious, that we do have an obesity problem in this country.”
Bloggers react to the political food fight:
- The Huckabee Jab Is Political, writes Ann Althouse: "Well, he's not running for President against Michelle Obama. He's running (potentially) against Sarah Palin. Ironically, Sarah Palin is the one who's thin."
- Huckabee's Right "As much as I am loath to agree with Mike Huckabee, he's right on spot here, "writes Doug Mataconis at Outside the Beltway. "As I noted on Monday, Palin's snarky criticism of what amounts to mostly a public education campaign encouraging kids to eat healthier, and parents to resist feeding them fast food, is just patently silly."
- No He's Not, writes Israel Pundit. "The
larger point here and the one Palin is making, is that we have to wean
ourselves away from the nanny state and take responsibility for
ourselves. Do we look to the state to manage us or do we manage
ourselves."
- I Seem to Recall Gov. Palin Speaking on This Very Topic, writes Ben Smith at Politico. He uncovers Palin's 2009 State of the State address in Alaska, in which she said:
We have alarming levels of heart disease, diabetes, childhood obesity--and all of these maladies are on the rise. Now, I won’t stand here and lecture--for very long--but health care reform on an individual basis is often just this simple: we could save a lot of money and a lot of grief by making smarter choices.It starts by ending destructive habits and beginning healthy habits in eating and exercise. In my case, it's hard to slack when you have the ever-present example of an Iron Dogger nearby. But many of us could use a little more time in our great outdoors--and when you live in the Great Land [of Alaska], there’s no excuse.
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