On Air Force One, No Lightening Up on Burgers and Cake

The New York Times ^ | June 27, 2014 | Emmarie Huetteman

[2ndDivisionVet]

A blue-cheese burger with lettuce, tomato and garlic aioli, accompanied by Parmesan-sprinkled fries. Chocolate fudge cake. Pasta shells stuffed with four cheeses, topped with meat sauce and shredded mozzarella, and served with a garlic breadstick. Cake infused with limoncello. Buffalo wings with celery, carrots and homemade ranch dip.

Such was the fare served to passengers aboard Air Force One during a particularly grueling three-state day on the campaign trail just before the 2012 election. Not much has changed since.

“It’s American fare, in that it’s not going all arugula on people,” said Arun Chaudhary, who was President Obama’s videographer from 2009 to 2011. “It’s not aggressively nutritious.”

To say the least. The food on Air Force One is well known among White House staff members and reporters for being plentiful in quantity and broad in appeal, but not always the perfect mirror of the nutritional recommendations coming out of the office of the first lady, Michelle Obama, who has made healthy eating and living her mission.

According to the Agriculture Department’s MyPlate guide, unveiled by Mrs. Obama in 2011, fruits and vegetables should make up half of a meal. (White potatoes alone will not do the trick, as the first lady wrote in a recent editorial.) Mrs. Obama has also emphasized the need to reduce the consumption of sugar, salt and fat in her fight to improve school lunches as part of her Let’s Move initiative against childhood obesity...

[2ndDivisionVet]

Do as I say, not as I do.

[Tax-chick]

I don’t eat anything on airplanes. Just Dramamine and Diet Coke.

[lightman]

We need a photoshop of Ø’s mug on King Julian from the animated Madagascar series.

[HiTech RedNeck]

So let them eat eggplant, Queen Michelle.

[Antihero101607]

Another Freeper posted the following a long time ago, I’m just quoting that individual.

“Let them eat kale.”

[Huskrrrr]

[HiTech RedNeck]

My sympathies in your mal de l’air.

[jocon307]

You can just tell Obama is the kind of person that could stuff his face from dawn to dusk and never gain an ounce. I bet that drives Michele NUTS.

[leapfrog0202]

I bet she stuffs her face with as much as possible while she’s on AF1 because then no one has to know that she does not eat as she expects others to.

[Tax-chick]

Thank you. Also sea and car.

[ConservingFreedom]

A blue-cheese burger with lettuce, tomato and garlic aioli, accompanied by Parmesan-sprinkled fries. Chocolate fudge cake. Pasta shells stuffed with four cheeses, topped with meat sauce and shredded mozzarella, and served with a garlic breadstick. Cake infused with limoncello. Buffalo wings with celery, carrots and homemade ranch dip.

Now there's drool all over my keyboard.

[blueplum]

Air Force One doesn’t seem to be in compliance with the Lunch Lady Program

[fhayek]

Before she started her “Let’s Move initiative against childhood obesity” it might have been a good idea to start her “Let’s move initiative against Moochelle obesity”.

[BenLurkin]

Wait a minute...why is our airplane being used for his reelection campaign?

[pallis]

That opening sentence gave me gout.

[COBOL2Java]

The food on Air Force One is well known among White House staff members and reporters for being plentiful in quantity and broad in appeal...

Broad, that's for sure...

[Star Traveler]

Oh man ... that first paragraph has some really good-sounding food!

[fhayek]

Yeah, that is bad enough, but Hillary used our airplane when she spent 2000 traveling to New York to run for senator. But, hey, let's go after Scott Walker for, for, whatever....