Oak Bluffs Ocean View: The Obamas To Vacation on Martha's Vineyard

Vineyard Vanguard
The White House officially confirmed yesterday what island residents have known for weeks: The Obamas will be spending the last week of August on Martha's Vineyard. The beautiful island is off the coast of Massachusetts, an incredibly charming outpost of the Eastern seaboard. It's pretty large, approximately 26 x 14 miles, depending on the tides, and has six different towns. Your intrepid blogger happens to be hanging here right now, unrelated to the upcoming visit by the First Family, of course. Chamber of Commerce executive director Nancy Gardella unofficially officially confirmed the Obama visit three days ago, because you can't keep that kind of thing under wraps when the island economy is depressed, and everyone who works at the Wesley Hotel is psyched, and telling everyone else that the Secret Service has blocked off seventy rooms; the bros with the ear wires have been crawling around for weeks. The historic inn, which is in the center of the town of Oak Bluffs, is the last of the grand Victorian hotels to be built on island in the late 1800s. The Obamas are rumored to be staying in a private residence in Oak Bluffs, too (no, not gonna spill the owner's name, so you can't Google Satellite it, sorry). (Above: President Obama bodysurfing, but not on the Vineyard).

Historic
The Obamas have spent time on the Vineyard before, but obviously this is their premiere trip as First Family. But summer rumors have been so big for so long that summer resident Charles Ogletree, a Harvard Law professor who's credited with being a major mentor to both the First Lady and one of her senior policy advisers, Jocelyn Frye (who's food initiative coordinator Sam Kass's partner in food policy strategizing), urged everyone to relax in an interview on July 6. The President's senior policy advisor Valerie Jarrett also has a house here. Oak Bluffs has a long-time African American community; black Americans have been on island since white settlers first showed up to land grab from the natives. The centerpiece of Oak Bluffs is a big collection of historically preserved gingerbread cottages, which are in the Carpenter Gothic style, and painted in crazy crackers colors (in pic; and it's not photoshopped for color). These were originally built as a campground for a Methodist summer religious revival. The largest marina on island is in the middle of the cottage area, there are miles of public beaches. The best golf course, Farm Neck, is also in Oak Bluffs, so the President can continue his budding career as a duffer. There's tons of kid fun for Malia and Sasha, including the Flying Horses carousel, a brilliant wood-carved confection that showed up in 1874 and has been in continuous operation since. For certain the Obamas will be invited to sail with everyone, and the First Lady will, no doubt, be given a piece of Wampum jewelry by an enthusiastic local craftsperson. Wampum is made of shells, and the darker the purple color, the more expensive the piece. Of course the visit is causing excitement, but the island has a constant stream of celeb visitors, and there's a general aesthetic of respecting privacy.

Vineyard weather sucks right now, BTW. It's been the coldest wettest summer in decades. That doesn't impede the general charm, but thanks to a tough winter, year-round residents are bumming out--it's usually bracingly hot by this time of year, and sunny all the time, with late sunsets and early dawns. Many Presidents have stayed on the Vineyard--including the Kennedys; two days ago it was the tenth anniversary of John F. Kennedy, Jr.'s death. He died while piloting a small plane from Hyannis (the mainland) to the Vineyard, where he was headed for a cousin's wedding. His wife, Caroline, and her sister Lauren Bessette were also killed in the crash. That sea crossing in little planes is always dicey, in the nervous opinion of your intrepid blogger; the fast ferry is waaaay better. The Clintons were frequent visitors, too, during Bill Clinton's admin.

The Vineyard Has an Activist Microfarm Economy
There have been big efforts made to encourage preservation of old-time farming plots, and to encourage the promulgation of antique/native/heritage crops. Sheep figure into the mix. Wild gleaning straight from the land is a tradition, and a hobby for summer visitors; here's a fun article on the subject from a local mag, with recipes for things you've probably never heard of, like Irish Moss and Purslane (in pic--it's swell for cooking; adds punch to soups, stews, meats, and beverages, and the seeds can be dried, crushed, and made into flour). There are lots of organic-esque restaurants in the various towns, which highlight the local bounty of the sea and the land. But there've also been red tides going on since late spring, however, and cautious people are avoiding certain sea foods this summer, such as clams. Lobster, BTW, in the early days of the island, was considered prison food, because there were so many creatures close to shore that you could just wade into the surf and grab 'em. The sustainability aesthetic is pervasive and ingrained; islands always have a problem with waste, and recycling is mandatory and rigidly enforced here.

The President's Local Farmer Grandpa
Of course area genealogists have traced the Obama family tree to nearby Cape Cod; on his mother's side, the President is a tenth generation grandson of Edward FitzRandolph, a 17th century farmer who arrived in Barnstable Scituate around 1639. The FitzRandolphs came from England, according to "Genealogical Notes of Barnstable Families," a book of historical Barnstable families, published in 1979. Surely Edward FR rowed out to the Vineyard for some fun whaling. The FitzRandolph connection to the Obama bloodline happened when Edward FitzRandolph's great-granddaughter Prudence married a man named Shubael Smith, whose daughter Mary married Jonathan Dunham, joining the FitzRandolphs with the Dunham clan. Five generations later, Jonathan Dunham's great-great-great-great-great-granddaughter, Ann Dunham, gave birth to the President (in pic, with the President as a boy).

*Here's the Vineyard Chamber of Commerce's calendar of events, in case you want to check out what's happening when the Obamas are on island.

Guest Post: Bill Marler's Food Safety Advice For Secretaries Vilsack and Sebelius

Attorney Bill Marler is the top food poisoning litigator in the country, a relentless champion of food safety (in photo). A founding partner of Marler Clark law firm in Seattle, Mr. Marler spends an exhaustive amount of time advocating for better food safety practices in America, and is on the road much of the year visitng families of food poisoning victims, giving seminars to industry on better food safety practices, as well as testifying before Congress. He does this internationally, too, through his non-profit organization Outbreak!. Mr. Marler is the author of Marler Blog, the top site on the Internet for food safety information. He's also a husband and father of three, and in this guest post, he writes about the profound effect of food poisoning on families...and what our Secretaries can learn from his experience.

Mr. Marler writes:

On Tuesday, I spent time with a family in South Carolina whose 4-year-old ate tainted Nestlé Toll House cookie dough and suffered months of hospitalizations, weeks of dialysis and seizures. She faces a lifetime of complications. And, there is a woman in Nevada who is still hospitalized, who has lost a portion of her large intestine, and was on dialysis until a few days ago. She faces months, if not years of rehabilitation. The cookie dough both ate was watched over by Secretary Kathleen Sebelius’s FDA.

On Wednesday, I sat across the kitchen table with a family who lost their only daughter because she died from an E. coli O157:H7 infection from meat inspected by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack’s USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. I then visited families in a Cleveland hospital whose children are struggling in their battle against Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome – again E. coli O157:H7 tainted hamburger is to blame.

I began my career as a food safety attorney because Lauren Beth Rudolph died on December 28, 1992 in her mother’s arms, due to complications of an E. coli O157:H7 infection - Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome. She was only 6 years, 10 months, and 10 days old when she died. Her death, the deaths of three other children, and the sicknesses of 600 others, were eventually linked to E. coli O157:H7 tainted hamburger produced by Von’s and served at Jack in the Box restaurants on the West Coast during late 1992 and January 1993. I met Roni Rudolph, Lauren’s mom, when I litigated the case against Jack in the Box. We've been friends in the ensuing sixteen years. (Photo: Lauren Rudolph, RIP)

Dave Theno became head of Jack in the Box’s food safety shortly after the E coli outbreak that caused Lauren's death. I have known Dave for sixteen years, too. However, I only learned recently a significant fact about Dave, one that made me admire him even more, and one that I think that not only that all leaders in corporate food safety should emulate, but one that both Secretary Vilsack and Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius should pay attention to, too. Together, they're in charge of the Food Safety Working Group, and they oversee food safety for all of America. Michael Taylor, their newly appointed special advisor, should take note, as well.

Dave and I shared the stage at the Nation Meat Association annual convention a few months ago. The NMA is a lobbying association representing meat processors, suppliers, and exporters. We were both there to discuss food safety initiatives with the people who produce the meat for America--and for much of the world. Dave spoke just before I did, and he was rightly lauded as someone who takes food safety to heart. However, it was his story about Lauren Rudolph and his relationship with Roni Rudolph that struck me. Dave told the very quiet audience about Lauren’s death. Dave also told us that the death of Lauren and his friendship with Roni had changed him. He told us all that he had carried a picture of Lauren in his brief case every day since he had taken the job at Jack in the Box. He told us that every time he needed to make a food safety decision – who to pick as a supplier, what certain safety specifications should be – he took out Lauren’s picture and asked, “What would Lauren want me to do?”

I thought how powerful that image was. The thought of a senior executive holding the picture of a dead child seeking guidance to avoid the next possible illness or death from food is stunning, but completely appropriate. I wonder if Secretaries Vilsack and Sebelius do anything similar when they do their work on President Obama’s Food Safety Working Group? If they do not, perhaps they should? Right now, there are hundreds of families struggling with illnesses and death related to food that the Secretaries--and Michael Taylor, the new special food safety advisor--are charged with monitoring, which has been tainted with E. coli O157:H7. And there's still plenty of tainted meat floating around in our food supply from the most recent recall--because that recall was voluntary, and not all the product has been either found--or destroyed. There will be more Moms and Dads like Roni Rudolph, and that's a terrible and sad fact.

Secretaries Vilsack and Sebelius should be like Dave Theno. They should run their departments like Dave ran food safety at Jack in the Box. They should meet the families whose lives have been forever changed by tainted food. They should across kitchen tables, they should go to the children's hospital rooms and see more tubes and wires than can be counted. It's a way of understanding what these families have lived though, and it's a way of understanding what it's like to become ill, and perhaps die from tainted food. Secretaries Vilsack and Sebelius--both of whom are parents--should take these stories into their hearts. It is hard, very hard, but it will give them a real reason to do their jobs.

**
Ed. note: Six months into the Obama Era, and USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service remains without an appointed undersecretary. Mr. Marler has been vetted for this position, but there has been no move to appoint anyone. At Grist, Tom Philpott examines the DC rumors that Pennsylvania Ag Secretary Dennis Wolff may get the job, while Tom Laskawy reports on the unfortunate reasons this could be true. Secretary Vilsack has cited conflict of interest issues for his failure to make an appointment (Secretary Vilsack, in pic).

Parsing The First Lady's Future Food Agenda: Kass! Kids! Kooking! And The Critical Missing Element...

It’s interesting to publish a story on the future direction of First Lady Michelle Obama’s food policy…and then not really mention the First Lady’s future food policy. That’s what’s going on over at the Washington Post, in Jane Black’s The Next Course. This can only be chalked up to editorial intervention, because Ms. Black’s a swell food writer, but the “progress report” on the First Lady’s food agenda doesn't really report much “progress.” Basically, Black’s story can be summed up thusly: Kids are important to the First Lady’s food agenda, and she’s going to keep focusing on kids, but it’s unclear how. Or to directly quote Black--Now what? But this is an oversimplification of the subject, for anyone who’s paid close attention to what’s going on at the White House. The East Wing’s already got a multi-layered food agenda, with lots of terrific messaging, and lots of readable road signs about where it's all headed. (Above: Mrs. Obama and Kass shell peas in the White House kitchen during the Kitchen Garden Harvest picnic event)

What the White House hasn’t yet got is an appropriate system to do their food messaging. Black quotes White House assistant chef and food initiative coordinator Sam Kass as saying he's working on a series of recipes that will focus on seasonal cooking, as a way to make Mrs. Obama's health and nutrition message more concrete. But it’s unclear if the project will be in the form of a book, or a website, or even videos. To date, Kass has released one set of recipes from the excitingly busy White House Kitchen, and Executive Chef Cris Comerford has also released one recipe. But Kass maintains that recipes will be a "bigger part" of White House food activity.

"We are exploring new avenues to get real, practical recipes into the hands of mothers and fathers," Kass tells Wa Po.

This is currently the most critical issue in WH food policy—developing those avenues into an actual messaging system. So far, there’s been a reliance on mainstream media to spread Mrs. Obama's good news on food—and mainstream media often gets it wrong, since most reporters aren’t food writers. And this is particularly true for the White House press pool reporters who trail Mrs. Obama around. Case study: A recap of the press pool reports of the First Lady's remarks during a visit to Bancroft elementary school is here; what she actually said is here (Mrs. Obama at Bancroft, in pic). As the First Lady has swung further into food policy issues with each speech she’s given over the last two months, her important remarks have often been undermined by poor reporting, or they're not reported at all. Unfortunately, this has been twinned with the fact that there’s been no dedicated portion of the White House website in support of Mrs. Obama's agenda, no consistent approach adopted, no special social media use other than a single Youtube video starring slugger Ryan Howard touring the garden with Kasss. Even the USDA is tweeting and using social media these days, and has numerous dedicated blogs—such as the Rural Tour blog. So a well-designed, multi-platform messaging system—that's all in one place, and encompasses a variety of social media--eg, making those decisions about what avenues to take—is what really needs to change.

To date, the soft policy for messaging Mrs. Obama's food agenda has been to not make corrections when the media misreports food issues. Mostly, this has worked because it both promotes healthy eating and nutrition awareness, and has been a good way to avoid hard controversy. But it's become a policy of allowable obfuscation, and the jury is no longer out on whether this is a good choice, given the most recent media activity. We're in the 21st century, with thousands of food media outlets going at it, and many blogs have multiple posts in a single day. Misinfo gets immediately reported as truth; there's little fact checking once something's online. Case study: Since March, the public has been convinced that the White House Kitchen Garden is organic. This fact has been trumpeted in headlines around the world, invoked at every turn. The truth is, the White House Kitchen Garden uses some organic practices, but it isn't certified organic, a three-year, multi-step process. In fact, Mrs. Obama has never used the word "organic" in her recent formal public remarks. But allowing the media to characterize the garden as organic seemed to be doing no harm, so why bother to correct the record? Well, because when you eventually do correct the record, and announce that the garden isn't actually organic, the public begins to wonder just what the devil to believe (transparency!). It can be argued that it’s not the WH’s job to correct misguided reporters, but on the other hand, Kass has made relatively few public comments, and his First Big Media Profile has not appeared (in contrast to Comerford, who has done a big interview for international media) so the myth has stayed alive, because Kass oversees the garden. He’s kept mostly mum, while the public is thirsty for food knowledge, because the First Lady's remarks have gotten so much attention despite the fact that they get often get misreported. (Above: Kass with starts for the garden)

Much of the messaging problems are due to the fact that the White House does not have a staffer who is dedicated solely to handling food media issues. Sure, both the East and West Wings are filled with talented, super smart, dedicated people, but mention CAFOs, GM crops, child nutrition re-authorization--or, um, lead contamination--to people in the press offices--and their eyes could well glaze over (your intrepid blogger's eyes often glaze over when these topics are discussed, and your intrepid blogger writes about them daily). Food policy’s a complicated topic (and often boring beyond belief), and yet at the same time it's very controversial, with everyone from parents to chefs to activists to scientists to Congress and lobbyists weighing in on the subject. And the people who write about food policy are highly opinionated, and frequently statistic-happy wonks who have micro-opinions (your blogger is guilty as charged). And food media is a reflection of this--it’s divided into monstrous little duchies that all seem to compete with each other, and who want to break the latest food news--whether it's true or not. Combine this with the fact that the White House Kitchen Garden has become internationally famous, and is frequently invoked as a symbolic object for things that are unrelated to it, and it's a big problem. Case study: Food writer Barry Estabrook, in Gourmet mag online, just opened a story on USDA's organic standards problems by invoking Mrs. Obama and the kitchen garden. Why didn't Estabrook use USDA's own People's Garden, Ag. Secretary Tom Vilsack's fave project--which is certified organic--to make his point instead? Well, because Mrs. Obama has a higher popularity rating than Secretary Vilsack, and a photo of her digging in the garden is more likely to get readers interested in the attendant blog post than a photo of Secretary Vilsack doing the same thing. Problems are built in and guaranteed when you've got a garden that's credited with inspiring the Queen of England to go plant her own palace food garden, and all of Russia seems to love the First Lady because she's gardening.

The worst case of media misreporting on White House food that didn't get corrected speaks directly to the problem of food media run amok. The faux lead contamination issue in the garden got out of control because no one from the White House addressed online mag Mother Jones's first salvo of accusations that the garden was poison (although your intrepid blogger did). Huffington Post made this worse; it has a huge readership and an editorial policy that blog pieces are "opinion" rather than factual reporting, and thus posts whatever its bloggers write with absolutely no fact checking. Huff Po managed to spin the lead issue out of all proportion by posting a piece by Andrew Kimbrell, who used the Mother Jones piece but didn't fact check it, and then blogged that the Obama's garden was swimming in lead-contaminated sludge (and he did this twice). Mr. Kimbrell is a respected activist on food and environmental issues (or he used to be, before he stepped in sludge...), and thus his complete lack of accuracy about the garden and lead suddenly seemed like real fact. Your intrepid blogger corrected this nonsense, too, at Huffington Post, and then the WH did release a statement on the lead level in the garden. But the correction was not vetted by a WH food media staffer, there was no soils expert quoted to give perspective on what the WH lead level really means, and so the statement got into the AP news wire with the headline White House Garden Tests Positive For Lead. This rapidly went global, picked up in ms media and the blogosphere. Because few people understand lead issues--but they do understand that lead can be toxic--it resulted in more media activity about lead at the White House. A more realistic headline: The Entire Earth Tests Positive For Lead, And The White House Kitchen Garden Tests Shockingly Low In Comparison.

Sure, you can't control all media, even if you're the White House (though this is a frequent accusation), but corrections can be made on critical issues. Although the lead test results for the garden had been released by the National Park Service months prior to the attempts to blame kitchen garden "contamination" on sewage sludge, it didn't matter to anyone wanting to invoke the kitchen garden for their own use--Kimbrell, Mother Jones, and all the other media outlets and bloggers who jumped on board. After about a week, things quieted down with the lead accusations, yet even now, the issue is still swirling in the mediasphere, and it’s re-gaining traction, particularly in the right wing arena…because nothing ever dies on the Internet (the issue is even raised in the comments section for Black's Wa Po story).

It's little wonder that the White House is in general allergic to Huffington Post, btw. Their poor editorial policy for fact checking is irresponsible. Could the WH have changed the way lead was reported? Should Press Secretary Robert Gibbs have explained, at a presser, what lead levels mean in gardens, and pointed pool reporters to state ag extension sites that accurately explain this? No. Secretary Gibbs has far more pressing issues to deal with, like national security and the economy. But an explanation of gardening--and what lead levels mean for food gardens, on a portion of the WH website that's devoted to kitchen and garden issues--would've eliminated the problem rapidly. People look to the WH website as the source, even when the rest of the blogosphere is going nuts.

There's another good example of how White House food issues keep resurfacing--which has nothing to do with Press Office response, at all, but does point out the long life-span of Internet Obama food stories. When Mrs. Obama visited DC's Miriam's Kitchen to work on the food service line, one of the pool photographers captured an image of a soup line guest photographing the First Lady with his cell phone camera. This caused an uproar in the blogosphere with questions about why someone who can't afford to pay for food can afford to have a cell phone (btw, there are plenty of good reasons to explain how this turn of events is entirely possible). It was a minor moment of "scandal" in the scheme of things, and unrelated to anything the First Lady was doing at Miriam's, yet months later, bloggers are still focusing on it--and some have newly discovered it. This has gone on to such a large degree, via viral e mail, that Snopes.com, the Internet site that debunks Internet myths, has a dedicated page for the subject (good job, Snopes!).

Obama Foodorama gets a perpetual stream of hits from people looking for White House recipes, for nutrition advice, for gardening guidance, for event dinner menus, for which china service is used at which event—everything from how to plant exactly what Mrs. Obama planted, to queries about where the White House has gotten its seeds, to what's the calorie count of a Ray's Hell Burger and what kind of condiments the President prefers. Clearly there’s a huge public interest in all Obama food activity, but particularly in cooking and gardening education issues. This is due to the public’s unfortunate half-literacy in both cooking and gardening, and an awareness--that's been inspired by the First Lady--that we're all suffering from our poor food choices. The White House is hoping to change this for a multiplicity of policy reasons (health care reform being primary among these, but the ability to achieve the President's educational goals is closely related, too...) so the WH now needs to really help in concrete ways. Critical messaging is lost if it can't be easily found, a zen koan that's worth pondering...

Related: Chef Comerford's recipe for no-cream Creamed Spinach is here; Chef Kass's recipes for the White House Garden Harvest picnic are here. And no, sorry, there's still no recipe for the cupcakes that were served at that event...

*This post was updated on July 17.

Off The Menu: The Fat Obama Sandwich At Rutgers Grease Trucks

Bad Ideas In Presidential Food...
President Obama was supposed to visit Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey this afternoon for a campaign rally for Democratic Gov. John Corzine. Unfortunately, the visit has been moved to the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, due to overwhelming demand for event tickets. Ob Fo says unfortunately because there was a fascinating grassroots campaign going on last week to get the President to visit the Rutgers Grease Trucks, which are a locally famous foodie tradition. The mobile catering trucks surround the Rutgers campus, and feed students with all kinds of unhealthy fare. The over sized sandwiches created by the Grease Trucks usually have tons of cheese loaded on top of the (often fried or breaded) meats, with sauces, as well as a full serving of French fries...on the sandwich. A sandwich called the "Fat Darrell" is the #1 selling sandwich among all the Grease Trucks; it consists of chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, French fries, and marinara sauce (in pic).

Talk show host Brian Lehrer of WNYC radio hosted columnist Mike Kelly of New Jersey newspaper The Record last week in a campaign to flood the White House with e-mail requests for an Obama Grease Truck appearance. The logic: If President Obama can visit Ray's Hell Burger, he can visit the Grease Trucks, because they're "a Rutgers institution." The call-in show took suggestions from listeners for the ingredients for a Fat Obama sandwich.

"The President doesn't have to endorse it as a lifestyle in order to sample it as local cuisine," Lehrer reasoned on-air about an Obama Grease truck visit.

*Fat Darrell Pic from Grub Street Philadelphia. Thanks to Wendy Wasser, Fourth Sector Consulting.

First Lady's Fort Bragg Visit Leads To Change In Military Policy For Food Assistance...

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama have been tireless champions of the members of the US armed forces, in a swell change from the policies of past administrations. Now, there's a new proposal before the Senate that's inspired by Mrs. Obama's March visit to Fort Bragg, in North Carolina. During her tour of the base, Mrs. Obama was told by military families that they often have to rely on Food Stamps because pay is so low. Mrs. Obama called attention to this sad fact in an appearance on Good Morning America:

"These are people who are willing to send their loved ones off to, perhaps, give their lives--the ultimate sacrifice," The First Lady said. "But yet they're living back at home on Food Stamps. It's not right, it's not where we should be as a nation."

Currently, a Senate committee is seeking to more than double the military's Family Supplemental Subsistence Allowance, so military families willl not need Food Stamps. Under S 1390, the version of the 2010 defense reauthorization Bill passed in June, the payment would rise to $1,100 per month. The Bill goes to vote shortly. It's a terrific example of how the First Lady can effect food policy, even though the issue of military pay will remain an ongoing topic of discussion...

Photo at top of post: Mrs. Obama greets members of the armed forces at Fort Bragg's Iron Mike Dining Facility, via AP.

Ag. Secretary Vilsack & The Summer Rural Tour In Wisconsin: Organic Family Dairy Farmers To Protest

Later today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will be confronted by a very worried group of organic dairy farmers, when the Summer Rural Tour rolls into West Salem, Wisconsin. Sec. Vilsack is visiting with Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, as part of his series of listening sessions to connect with rural Americans and discuss Recovery issues. The dairy farmers have been facing dropping milk prices for months, and claim that a glut of organic milk, created by giant factory farms, threatens to bankrupt family farmers. Sec. Vilsack recently pledged to address the issue, and try to stabilize milk prices. Milk-market issues are not solely an American problem; in the European Union, similar protests are occurring on a weekly basis.

The farmers will have a symbolic milk dump in protest, according to organizers, which is a new activist tactic for the dairy folks. The rally is sponsored by Ag advocacy groups, including the Center for Rural Affairs, and the Cornucopia Institute.

*Photo: Sec. Vilsack at last week's Rural Tour event in New Hampshire, via AP.

Bud & A Brew At The All Star Game...

The Beer Lobby loves it when President Obama is photographed drinking beer in public. And that seems to be a brewski he's sipping, above, while sitting with MLB commissioner Bud Selig at the All Star game on Tuesday night. On the President's right, in white shirt, is baseball great Hank Aaron. The President also pitched the first ceremonial ball, and gave a rousing video speech about community service.
*Photo by Pete Souza, official White House photographer

Pitching Community Service With The All Stars...

The South Sider President threw the ceremonial first pitch at last night's All Star game in St. Louis. Part of the opening ceremony was a video with a call to national service, featuring all the living presidents, as part of the All Stars Among Us campaign, which is Major League Baseball's community service arm. Cardinals' star Albert Pujols caught the President's pitch (Small pic: post pitch luv...)

*Videos of the night's festivities are here. The menu for the All Star Gala is here.

*Photos via Reuters.

The MLB All-Star Game: President Obama Pitches Baseball and Community Service. And The Menu For The All-Star Gala...

It's gonna be Big Presidential Fun tonight when President Obama, who is a huge baseball fan, shows up in St. Louis for the MLB All-Star Game at Busch Stadium. Although no players from Obama-fave team the Sox made it onto tonight's roster, the President is tossing out the first ceremonial pitch, appearing in the announcers' booth with Fox sportscasters Joe Buck and Tim McCarver, and starring in a seven-minute pre-game video with former presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter. The video honors 30 Americans whom MLB and People magazine have recognized for service to their communities, because Major League Baseball has huge community service and charitable initiatives as part of their corporate ethos; that's just one of many reasons the President is making an appearance. (Above: The President with 2008 World Series champs the Phillies at the White House on May 15; five Phillies players will start tonight for the National team, including Ryan Howard, of White House Kitchen Garden tour fame)

President Obama becomes the fourth sitting president to throw the first ball at an All-Star game: John F. Kennedy did it in 1962 in Washington, Richard Nixon in 1970 (Cincinnati) and Gerald Ford in 1976 (Philadelphia). He'll be joined in the infield by the six living Baseball Hall of Famers from home town team the Cardinals: Ozzie Smith, Stan Musial, Red Schoendienst, Lou Brock, Bruce Sutter and Bob Gibson. Two-time MVP Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals, tonight's biggest ball star, will catch the President's pitch (in pic above: Pujols wearing his National league uniform at bat yesterday during the Home Run Derby, part of the All-Star festivities). It's Pujols's eighth straight start at an All-Star game, and his advice for the President for the pitch:

"I'm just going to tell him, 'Lob it up there. Don't try to be a perfect throw,'" Pujols said to MLB news. "The worst thing, if you throw any first pitch, you don't want to bounce it. That's the advice that I'm going to give. Make sure that you don't bounce it."

The Big Foodie Event At The All-Stars Game...And Charitable Initiatives
Naturally, since President Obama is showing up, there'll also be All-Star Chefs at tonight's event, cookin' up a storm at an All-Star Pre-Game Party and a post-game All-Star Gala. Chef Jeramie Mitchell (in pic), the executive chef at Busch Stadium, is running both shindigs, which are expected to serve about 8,000 people. He'll be joined by fellow MLB exec chefs James Major of the Cleveland Indians and Mark Szubeczak of the Detroit Tigers, and six other MLB chefs, all of whom work for Delaware North Companies SportService Inc., a huge sports event company. Each of the chefs is donating their salary from tonight's event to a scholarship fund for area culinary students, which is expected to top $10,000. More than 100 of these culinary students will join the chefs for tonight's event; they're getting a crash-course in gourmet catering. And as a terrific element of MLB's community service, all perishable foods left over from the events will be collected by Operation Food Search, and distributed to area food banks and hunger programs. The agency feeds more than 100,000 disadvantaged citizens in the tri-state area each month.

Chef Mitchell created a locally themed and sourced menu that is divided into culinary traditions from St. Louis neighborhoods, "The Hill," "Soulard," "The Loop," and "Forest Park," as well as dishes that highlight Missouri's foods, particularly local cheeses. On the menu: Soulard Bar B Que, which features St. Louis Style Smokehouse Ribs, Smoked Chicken Wings with Lava Mustard Sauce, Mardi Gras Cole Slaw, and Gooey Buttercake; The Hill, which features Traditional St. Louis Toasted Ravioli, Mozzarella & Tomato Caprese, and Chocolate Dipped Strawberries; Ozark Carvery/The Loop, which features Honey Glazed Pork Steamship Round, Bourbon & Peach Compote, Roasted Summer Vegetable Salad, Hanks Mini Cheesecakes, and Forest Park Picnic/Central West End, which features Roasted Turkey BLT with Roasted Garlic Mayo, Summer Fruit Salad with Vanilla & Mint, Mini Cupcakes.

Chef Mitchell is locally famous for his Buttermilk Cheddar Drop Scones; the recipe is here.

President Obama is very familiar with St. Louis and local culi offerings; in April, the bros who run Pi Pizza flew to Washington to make their special pies at the White House. The President also spent part of his 100th day in office in St. Louis, at a Town Hall meeting, and last October 18, during Campaign Season, his speech under the Gateway Arch drew more than 100,000 people (in photo). Tragically, the President lost Missouri by .1 percent to John McCain...but that's just another part of the appeal of tonight's All-Star game, too. It's a big swell op to solidly convert the entire Midwest with b-ball charm; this afternoon, the President will also be in Michigan for about five seconds, too, talking up education and Recovery.

*Related: Phillies First Baseman Ryan Howard and White House Food Initiative coordinator Sam Kass take a fun tour of the White House Kitchen Garden here. "Oh, snap, son!"

*The All-Star Game airs tonight at 8:00 PM ET on Fox Sports.

*Photos: Reuters

It's All Connected: Antibiotics Into Candybiotics, Health Care Reform, The First Lady's Food Agenda, and Rep. Slaughter's HR 1549

Antibiotics In Food Animals As A Public Health Ponzi Scheme...
Many healthy farm animals in the US are routinely given powerful antibiotics so they don't get ill in the future, and this is having a dire effect on the usefulness of the drugs, as antibiotic resistance increases in both animals and humans, and new strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria mutate into existence. Because these animals will become food (or create food, as in egg-laying hens), it's a critical food issue that's been the subject of much debate in the health care community. Called non-therapeutic dosing, or prophylactic antibiotic use (nope, it has nothing to do with sex...) the practice is a standard--and legal--occurrence in the US agriculture industry. In fact, it's such a common practice that animal feed and animal 'nutritional beverages' are routinely available with the antibiotics already included in the ingredients. Very often, a livestock owner doesn't even need a prescription from a vet to get antibiotics for animal use. Unfortunately, overuse of medication amounts to a public health ponzi scheme: The practice of dosing healthy food animals is turning once-powerful antibiotics into the equivalent of candy.

A Health Crisis Created By Economic Imperatives...
The dangerous practice of pre-dosing food animals with antibiotics exists primarily to eliminate future economic losses for farmers who might lose livestock to potential illness. It's particularly prevalent in industrialized animal concerns (CAFOs), where livestock is massed together in hyper crowded and often filthy conditions, in which diseases can rapidly breed and spread. But smaller livestock farmers routinely engage in unnecessary antibiotic use, too, because they have a tight margin for economic error and need to guard against loss in any way possible (particularly during these tough economic times).

But there's now overwhelming scientific evidence, from more than a decade of studies conducted around the world, that overuse of antibiotics in food animals is assisting in the creation of antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria as well as dramatically reducing the effectiveness of antibiotics when used for animals and humans who are actually ill. Many people have heard of MRSA--methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, often referred to as "flesh eating" bacteria--which is a strain of staph that's resistant to the broad-spectrum antibiotics once used to treat it. MRSA infections have skyrocketed in the last five years, in both human-to-human transmission, as well as in animal-to-human transmission, but it's just the tip of the infectious disease iceberg. Other bacterias--such as salmonella and campylobacter, two common food borne disease pathogens--have also become resistant to antibiotics, as have a host of other bacteria (and antibiotic resistant tuberculosis is now prevalent in urban areas, and virulent strains of bacterial pneumonia are on the uptick, too). We're already well on our way to the collapse of this particular public health ponzi scheme. If antibiotics stop being effective, as a society we automatically revert back at least a century, when fatalities from now-treatable infectious diseases will soar once again. We also shoot rapidly into a devastating future, in which newly created infectious diseases simply can't be treated with available drugs.

Rep. Louise Slaughter's HR 1549: Critical Legislation
Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-NY) is seeking to put an end to the transformation of antibiotics into candybiotics with HR 1549, the Preservation of Antibiotics For Medical Treatment Act (PAMTA), which is an amendment to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. A microbiologist in her private life, Rep. Slaughter's critically important legislation is designed to preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics for treating human disease, by eliminating antibiotics from animal feed, and making it illegal to use the drugs on healthy animals, and illegal to acquire antibiotics without a prescription. More than 300 organizations representing health, consumer, agriultural, environmental, and other interests including the American Medical Association and the American Public Helth Association have come out in support of Rep. Slaughter's legislation, and she's got 43 co-sponsors for the Act (including Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) a longtime champion of food safety), but it has yet to be introduced into the House. Today, at 2:30, there's a hearing before the House Rules Committee; Rep. Slaughter is Chair of this committee, and she's seeking more co-sponsors for the Act, and engaging in a new campaign to raise awareness of the importance of the issue, on the Hill and in the general public. Last Thursday, Rep. Slaughter hosted a public screening of the new documentary Food, Inc., at the Capitol Visitor Center. The film covers, in grim detail, the kind of industrialized ag practices that are dangerous to human health--including giving healthy animals unnecessary drugs. The screening was well attended by Hill staffers, according to Ben Shannon, one of Rep. Slaughter's aides, who is overseeing the new awareness campaign, and that's a good thing, because antibiotic resistance effects a panoply of other government agencies--for instance, Homeland Security. The government has stockpiles of antibiotics in place for bio-terror attacks (such as anthrax), but if the larger population has developed resistance to antibiotics--these drugs simply won't work. Mass death is a pretty grim public health scenario, isn't it?

Will The First Lady Ever Address This Issue?
First Lady Michelle Obama has initiated a path-breaking national conversation about unburdening our health care system of the costs of preventable food-created illnesses such as diabetes, obesity and heart disease in order to enact health care reform. Over the last two months, in a series of public remarks, she's encouraged the entire nation to embrace a healthier, more active lifestyle that includes better, more nutritioous food choices, and an avoidance of processed and fast foods as staples of everyday eating; she holds that this will eliminate an estimated $120 billion in annual health care costs. But if millions of people can't be treated for infectious diseases because the food they eat is giving them resistance to antibiotics, as well as creating new strains of bacteria--that's preventable food-created illness, too, isn't it? Imagine the public health care cost of repeatedly treating an individual who is colonized by MRSA to the point of needing multiple hospital stays--but for whom the illness isn't fatal. Multiply this by millions of people catching--and living with--incurable infectious disease, and suddenly the health care system is overloaded, further, with the costs from preventable illnesses. These days, if you're aware of the science, it's difficult to talk about healthy eating and a balanced approach to food without talking about the imbalance and grave health care implications that are created by the overuse of antibiotics in food animals. Including this issue in the First Lady's health care food reform platform seems logical, but it's a highly volatile position politically, thanks to the lobbying influence of the multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical industry, as well as the insistence of the agribusiness sector that the meds are a necessary part of doing business.

Infectious Diseases Specialists In The Obama Administration
Because it's largely economic incentives that drive the overuse of antibiotics, there could be major opposition on the Hill to HR 1574 from those Members who represent the states that are home to the majority of the industrialized agriculture concerns. But we now have two infectious disease specialists leading the FDA-- Dr. Margaret Hamburg and her deputy, Dr. Joshua Sharfstein--so this is good news for any campaign that aims to preserve the usefulness of antibiotics. In fact, Dr. Sharfstein will be testifying today in Rep. Slaughter's hearing. Dr. Thomas Frieden, the newish head of the CDC, is also an infectious disease specialist, so clearly there's an awareness in the Obama administration that infectious diseases--and maintaining our ability to fight these--is a critical issue. Only time will tell if Rep. Slaughter's Act becomes law...but if it doesn't, our food ponzi scheme pyramid may rapidly collapse.

What can you do to protect yourself from having your antibiotics turn into candybiotics? First, choose meat from food animals that aren't routinely dosed with drugs. Check your labels. Second, call or e mail your own House Member and urge him or her to co-sponsor Rep. Slaughter's legislation. And when the Act goes before the House, urge your Representative to vote for it. Aren't we done with ponzi schemes?

*Related: Jeff Dufour and Kiki Ryan of Washington Examiner sum up Thursday night's showing of Food, Inc. for Hill staffers: "The film clearly sent a message to those on the Hill of needed policy changes," they write.

President Obama In Ghana: The Foodie Referents In A Speech To Parliament Highlight Africa's History and Future

The President Tells Foodcentric Family Stories From His Past, and Manages to Work in a Nod to African American Voters
After a breakfast banquet hosted by Ghana's President John Atta Mills, President Obama spoke at the Parliament in Accra, Ghana, yesterday. President Obama called Africa "a fundamental part of our interconnected world," and gave a rousing speech about "leapfrogging" across "the dirtier phases of development"--politically, environmentally, and economically--to bring all the nations in Africa into the 21st century. He applauded Ghana for its focus on the rule of law and civil society--a theme he hit again and again while in Russia--and noted that the left-overs of colonialism can't be blamed for the current corruption that exists in many parts of Africa. He invoked Martin Luther King, Jr, and also briefly referenced the liberation struggles of his own Kenyan grandfather:

Some of you know my grandfather was a cook for the British in Kenya, and though he was a respected elder in his village, his employers called him "boy" for much of his life. He was on the periphery of Kenya's liberation struggles, but he was still imprisoned briefly during repressive times. In his life, colonialism wasn't simply the creation of unnatural borders or unfair terms of trade -- it was something experienced personally, day after day, year after year.

President Obama's paternal grandfather, Hussein Onyango Obama, worked as a private cook for a British army captain in the late 1940s, after the Kenyan war for Independence. He was jailed for two years in a high-security prison, after the Mau Mau uprising to overthrow the Kenyan government, according to his third wife, Sarah Onyango, whom the President refers to as "Granny Obama" in his book Dreams From My Father. In a long interview with the London Times that appeared shortly before President Obama's inauguration, Granny Obama says the President's grandfather was beaten and tortured on a regular basis while incarcerated in Kenya's Kamiti prison, and that he never recovered from his experience (click the link above for full, harrowing details). In photo above: Then-Senator Obama with Granny Obama in 2008.

In his speech, President Obama also mentioned the foodie past of his father, Barack Obama, Sr:

My father grew up herding goats in a tiny village, an impossible distance away from the American universities where he would come to get an education. He came of age at a moment of extraordinary promise for Africa. The struggles of his own father's generation were giving birth to new nations, beginning right here in Ghana.

Goats are a critical part of Kenyan cuisine, for both milk and meat. But the senior Barack Obama was far luckier than his own father; as Kenya began a brief period of peace and progess; he went to Hawaii on a scholarship, and the rest is, er, history. But Kenya has now reverted to a state of disarray, politically and economically; the president noted that countries like Kenya had a per capita economy larger than South Korea's when I was born. They have badly been outpaced. Disease and conflict have ravaged parts of the African continent...

The $20 billion L'Aquila Food Security Initiative, announced Friday, could theoretically help restore peace and prosperity in Africa, in part by bringing sustainable agriculture to the continent and helping to end hunger issues while boosting the economy. But while President Obama mentioned this in his speech, his primary focus was on what Africa could and should do for itself. He called on Africans to build the sort of society he never saw: "Prosperous, democratic, honest and healthy." That's going to require a lot of leapfrogging.

African Immigrants In America, & The Black American Vote
The choice of a visit to an African nation to end the President's European tour is also a politcally brilliant one for the Obama administration, too, as they always have an eye on what's cooking for 2012 (to whit: Politico recently pointed out that each stop on Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack's Summer Rural Tour is in a Democratic "weakhold," an area that needs to be converted more solidly to the Democratic party in order for the President to be re-elected in 2012). During his speech in Accra, the President noted how successful many African immigrants to America have been, and congratulated them, in addition to pointing out his own connection through his goatherd father and cookin' grandfather. It's a politically important angle, at the moment, because in addition to the actual crop of current African immigrants, many black Americans identify with African heritage, and the black vote, in 2008, was not a slam-dunk for candidate Obama (for a variety of reasons...). The number of African immigrants in the US grew 40-fold between 1960, when Barack Obama Sr. arrived, and 2007, from 35,355 to 1.4 million, and it's still the fastest-growing immigrant population two years later. Most of this growth has taken place since 1990, and compared to other immigrants, the African-born tend to be highly educated and speak English well. They're also concentrated in the highest density in American states that have big electoral college votes: California (55), Texas (34), New York (31), Virginia (15) and Maryland (10). And while the Republican party is currently as tattered as a wrecked lace tea cozy, the Obama admin is made up of talented multi-taskers who are brilliant at creating public events that encompass a stew of goals...such as wooing the African American electorate while promoting development in sub Saharan Africa. Savvy! (Above: The President at a departure ceremony at the Ghana airport, speaking to a huge crowd of well wishers)

*Go here to read the full text of President Obama's speech.

*Pic at top of post by Saul Loeb, AFP; small pic of President Obama by Haraz N. Ghanbarhi, AP.

The Sort-of Return of The Prodigal Son: President Obama Arrives in Accra, Ghana

President Obama is greeted by President John Atta Mills of Ghana on his arrival in Accra Saturday morning(above). They're at the Presidential Castle. Crowds lined the street to catch a glimpse of the Obama motorcade (below). Yep, bananas being carried on the heads of excited well-wishers is the only foodie news out of Ghana so far...but the New York Times has a good wrap on why Ghana was chosen for the President's first visit official to any African country, rather than Kenya, where he still has extended family on his father's side.

*Top photo via Getty; crowd photo via CNN reporter Ed Henry's Flickr.

As G8 Concludes, L'Aquila Food Security Initiative is Announced After Personal Appeal From President Obama

The role of women and smaller farmers is highlighted; as well as land stewardship and local, sustainable agricultural development solutions
The G8 Summit in Italy concluded today with a path breaking new initiative for sustainable agricultural development in smaller countries, which calls for a $20 billion investement over three years by G8 members. Called the L'Aquila Food Security Initiative, the new plan is also being endorsed by a coalition of other leaders from more than 25 nations countries, as well as Representatives from major international organizations such as the UN, IMF, WTO, and others were at the G8, too). The aid money will primarily go to countries in Sub Saharan Africa. Yesterday, it was reported that the initiative funding would be $12 billion, but after an emotional personal appeal from President Obama this morning, in which he cited the experience of his own family members who live in "unacceptable poverty" in Kenya, larger-than-expected monetary pledges came from Canada and the European Commission. (Above: The G8 session this morning in which the L'Aquila Initiative was discussed; leaders from African countries were included; photo via Getty)

"Wealthier nations have a moral obligation as well as a national security interest in providing assistance," The President told reporters after the session. "The flip side is that countries in sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere in the world that are suffering from extreme poverty have an obligation to use the assistance that's available in a way that is transparent, accountable, and that builds on rule of law."

Michael Froman, the deputy White house national security adviser for international economics, who's been running the American part of the show for the G8, noted that the US will be giving $3.5 billion to the L'Aquila project, but added that only about half the pledge is "new money," though it roughly doubles non-emergency agricultural assistance.

Still, at a time when global security and economics are intertwined, the L'Aquila Initiative is plowing new ground in terms of international food and ag policy, because food aid has previously been "given" to smaller countries in the name of humanitarianism. Billions of dollars have been spent for decades, without helping the countries really develop any kind of way of sustaining themselves. And the new initiative takes the very progressive position of highlighting the role of smaller farmers and women farmers, who have been historically overlooked as the critical populations that do Ag work. The initiative also seeks to coordinate local/community based agriculture with state-run programs, and in turn have these coordinated among the world's nations. The key paragraph about what this all means on the ground:

Priority actions should include improving access to better seeds and fertilizers, promoting sustainable management of water, forests and natural resources, strengthening capacities to provide extension services and risk management instruments, and enhancing the efficiency of food value chains. In this regard, the increased involvement of civil society and private sector is a key factor of success. Investment in and access to education, research, science and technologies should be substantially strengthened at national, regional and international level...We recognize the opportunities and challenges associated with renewable energy production from biomasses. Related investment should be promoted in a sustainable way compatible with our food security goals.

There's also strong wording about effectively using World Trade Organization rules for monitoring international trade in order to reduce the kind of wild speculation in food commodities markets that led to the hunger riots that erupted around the globe in 2008...and which have big implications for the US economy, too.

Anti-GMO activists and those concerned with hunger issues have worried publicly that any kind of food security initiative arising from the G8 would have a heavy focus on technological fixes and sales of genetically modified seeds from multi-national corporations such as Monsanto, but this isn't necessarily the case--really, only time will tell; the initiative is literally a blueprint, with few hard details of what that $20 billion will actually be invested in.

President Obama travels onward to Ghana today, which was chosen for a visit because it is a "model democracy," with the ideas of "civil society" in place; the recent peaceful transfer of power to new President John Evans Atta Mills in a highly contested election is in direct contrast to the recurring political violence in other African countries. Ghana has also been successful in starting programs that are similar to those being endorsed by the L'Aquila initiative...(Photo: A billboard in Accra, Ghana, welcoming President Obama, via Reuters)

*To read the entire L'Aquila Food Security Initiative, click here.

When In Rome...Make Gelato: Obama Girls Get Crackin' in a Famous Italian Kitchen

This might be the best headline yet, since the Obamas became the First Family: Michelle Obama gets glimpse and taste of Eternal City; daughters eat gelato. It's from the AP wire, and though idiotic, it pretty much describes yesterday afternoon's activities. --Though Sasha and Malia toured the Colosseum with their mother, too, at twilight (in photo, above). From the press pool report (no, your intrepid blogger is not in Italy, but thanks for all the enquiring e mails, they're sure balancing out the insane blather from the Anti-Sludge Lobbyists):

Malia, 11, wearing sunglasses and a T-shirt with a peace symbol, and 8-year-old Sasha, dressed in green short pants, went with their grandmother to Giolitti, Rome’s best-known ice cream shop.

The girls were given aprons and cloths, and learned how to make ice cream, choosing blackberry and banana flavors, said shop owner Nazareno Giolitti.

“Right after they made gelato, they tasted it straight from the machine, and the youngest one said, ‘It really tastes like blackberries,’” he said by telephone. Giolitti said the two girls left with about 3 kilograms (6.6 pounds) each of the ice-cream they made. [Ob Fo note: 13+ pounds of ice cream?! If that's not a mistranslation, hope the Secret Service detail was hungry...]

Giolitti showed Italian state TV a tub of some of the blackberry flavor the girls made, and said that after the Obama sisters left, the leftover ice cream was snapped up by customers who wanted their cones filled with it. [Ob Fo note: Giolitti should freeze that stuff for the rest of time...]

At sunset, Malia and Sasha joined their mother for a private tour of the Colosseum. After about 40 minutes, the trio left the ancient Roman arena, with Malia clutching a guide book. Sasha had changed from her shorts to a floral-print dress for the guided tour (In pic, below; photos from Reuters).

G8 Lunch in L'Aquila: Will The Earth Shake, Or Will The Global Economy?

The G8 members left Rome and re-convened in L'Aquila, Italy, site of a devastating 6.3 earthquake in April, which killed 300 people. Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was accused of "grandstanding" for holding summit meetings in the quake-devastated area, but it seems to your intrepid blogger like a good metaphor for the wreckage of the global economy. On the menu: Recovery Risotto, Pasta a la Peptalk, Artichoke Agtech, Field of Dreams Field Greens. Dessert: Trade Tiramisu. (Above: President Obama confers with Japanese Prime Minister Taro)

*Photo by Pete Souza, available on White House Flickr.

The First Lady Lunches With Mayor and G8 Spouses at Musei Capitolini in Rome

First Lady Michelle Obama was the guest of Mayor Gianni Alemanno and his wife Isabella Rauti Alemanno today at a lunch at the Capitoline Museums in Rome (the Mayor is in the sash; Mrs. Alemanno is in scarf). The museums are considered by the mayor's office to be the most important art center in the city, and the lunch was held on an outdoor terrace. Other guests, below, included the spouses of G8 members, including the leaders of Sweden, Canada, South Africa, India, Britain, Mexico and Japan. On the menu: Lobster medallions, veal filet on apricot puree and walnut semi-freddo for dessert. The visit included a museum tour; the original bronze sculpture of Romulus/Remus is housed in one wing of the museum, as are other important works of art. President Obama had a working lunch with G8 leaders before entering work sessions.

*Photo: Getty

On The Plate At G8: The First Lady's International Appeal As Gardener Mirrors Expectations That America Will Help Plant The World

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama arrived in Rome, Italy, this morning, in advance of the G8 Summit, which begins today (Above: The Obamas entering Quirinale Palace, in Rome). The President's two days in Russia were path breaking in terms of "hitting the reset button" for American-Russian relations and opening a new era of bipartisanship in foreign policy, arms reductions, and trade. But perhaps equally notable was that the First Lady was being touted by the media as "more popular" among the Russian populace than the President, thanks to the White House Kitchen Garden. The First Lady is on this week's cover of popular Russian magazine Ogonyok , and the headline reads The Queen of the Fields: Michelle Obama and her husband can overturn our understanding of America (in pic). Writer Robin Givhan, reporting from Moscow for the Washington Post, notes that the reception of the First Lady in Russia is based far more on what she's done in the field of dreams around the White House than on what she wears to public events, as was the case when the First Lady visited Europe. And right before the Obamas left for Russia, an interviewer from the state-run ITAR-TASS/Rossiya TV pointed this out to President Obama, too.

"Tomatoes, apparently, now serve as tools for diplomacy," Ms. Givhan writes in the Post.

But that's always been the case; food trading and gifts of food are how cultures and countries relate to each other, historically. So of course Mrs. Obama's White House Kitchen Garden is understandable across cultures, no matter how different the cultures are. But tomatoes aren't just a tool for diplomacy these days, they're a tool for progressive foreign policy and stability. Food supplies are critical to peace and stability as much as President Obama's goal of reducing nuclear arsenals are critical to peace and stability. As the President begins the G8 Summit today, this could not be in clearer focus. Global food security will take up much of the discussion time during the G8 meetings. In an era when discord and civil unrest in one small country can have major global implications, food security has emerged as a dire concern; hungry populations are far more likely to overthrow their governments than are happy, well-fed populations, and this is something that can put entire regions into crisis, as the many food riots that occurred in 2008 proved. This week, the G8 leaders will announce a "food security initiative," committing $15 billion in agricultural investments over the next three years for countries in need of aid, in a formal platform that will be released on Friday, according to the New York Times. The US is expected to contribute about $3.5 billion of this sum over three years.

While the US has historically sent food aid to other countries in the interest of humanitarianism, the new focus from food to seeds, to encouraging agricultural development rather than sending foodstuffs is a far different approach than in previous administrations. Encouraging poorer countries to focus on developing their own Ag infrastructures and sustainable food economies seems like an obvious choice, but it simply hasn't been aggressively pursued as a policy. At a time when the world is intimately connected across vast distances, food security is a critical issue that goes well beyond humanitarian concerns--it's about global security, and environmental security, too. A draft statement of the new G8 program said that it “differs from previous approaches first because we will coordinate at country, regional and global levels and commit to work as partners with all stakeholders.” Also, the statement said, “it is focused squarely on agriculture development, which has for long been neglected.”

Seeds and fertilizer will be provided to countries receiving aid, as will "agricultural infrastructure," such as storage bins for post-harvest crops. The plan is focused on sub-Saharan countries, such as Ghana, which the President will visit this weekend. Ghana is regarded as a model African country because it's adopted democracy and "civil society." At issue with hunger activists and agricultural activists is whether or not the seeds will be genetically modified, of a type that are not indigenous to the country they are being sent to (a complicated issue, that could have its own blogpost---oh look, it does!)

Thus agriculture has now become a crucial element of the US State Department's action agenda, a policy position underscored recently in speeches by both Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. So in the same way the White House Kitchen Garden is a micro symbol of the President's agenda for America--with all its unspoken implications for personal food security, land stewardship, self sufficiency, and reducing our dependence on foreign oil, among other things--it's also become a symbol of his foreign policy, too. Seeding a new food world order literally began at home at the White House, in theory and in practice, and it's being carried, anew, to the rest of the world. As the "public face" of the White House Kitchen Garden, it's no surprise that Mrs. Obama is enjoying so much "popularity." Her planting of the garden accurately predicted what the rest of the world would ask of the President.

Above: President and Mrs. Obama meet Italian President Giorgioio Napolitano and First Lady Clio Napolitano at Quirinale Palace in Rome today, in advance of the G8. Photos via Reuters.

Protests At G8: Food And Climate Cookout

Whenever there's a G8 or a G20, there's plenty of local action in terms of protests. During the G20, there were also firebombings (a bank torched in London, a hotel and a bunch of cars in France...), but so far the protests during the G8 have been peaceful. And creative. In the pic, above, members of Oxfam International donned masks of the world leaders and dressed as chefs, then "cooked the planet" in a big cauldron, to draw attention to both hunger and climate change issues; dicussions of climate initiatives have been gravely watered down for the summit. From left, above: Faux French President Nicolas Sarkozy, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, US President Barack Obama, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.





















Faux Obama and Faux Medvedev read the recipes for climate change, above. Go here to read about more protests.

*Photos by AP/Sandra Pace

Power Breakfast: President Obama and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin

The President met with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin today at his home in Novo-Ogarevo, Russia (photo, above; PM Putin is in foreground). Formerly the president of Russia, Putin is still enormously powerful in Russia. On the breakfast menu: Bureaucratic Borscht and Cold War Cold Cuts; Post-Glasnost Power Pops for dessert. Putin's public announcement to President Obama:

"With you, we link all our hopes for the furtherance of relations between our two countries, there is little to show for platitudes," PM Putin said after the meeting.

The President commented after the meeting that he regards Russian President Dmitry Medvedev as his "counterpart;" their talks during the Russia meetings included an agreement to reduce nuclear arsenals, and strategies for opening Russia to trade (above: A formal photo op with PM Putin).

*Photos from Getty

Food Safety Working Group: Definitely In The 21st Century. Excellent Policy Points Announced For Surveillance, Prevention, Response, Recovery...

The key members of the Food Safety Working Group didn't formally announce Michael Taylor as the new, special Deputy Commissioner of Food during their press conference today, but they did announce a new, excellent public-health- based approach to food safety. Food Pol expert Marion Nestle of Food Politics, however, is confirming that Michael Taylor has gotten the job. What was announced today: A new, more aggressive way of monitoring food safety, which has three core principles: Prevention, improving enforcement, and improving response to/recovery from food borne disease outbreaks, according to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.

During today's announcement, Secretary Sebelius thanked Rep. John Dingell and Rep. Rosa DeLauro, longstanding champions of food safety, before she introduced her FSWG partners, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack and Vice President Joe Biden (in photo above).

In the audience for today's announcement were family members of foodborne illness victims, and VP Biden said changes in food safety laws were "long overdue," and had been unchanged since 1906..."since Upton Sinclair wrote The Jungle." He noted that part of his work with the Middle Class Task Force was ensuring food safety, and made a long statement about imported foods, processed foods, and how we're all put at risk by these.

"In the past, we've focused on food safety problems when they occur, now we're putting our focus on prevention," said VP Biden. "The tragedy of someone getting sick from food is made worse by someone else getting ill after we know what's making people ill."

"The President has made food safety an important national priority," VP Biden said.

He closed by thanking Bryan Silbermann, president of the Produce Marketing Association, someone who has been critical in promoting food safety for the produce industry.

Jointly, VP Biden and Secs. Sebelius and Vilsack announced the following imperatives for the new food safety approach:

(1) Prioritizing prevention
(2) Strengthening surveillance and enforcement
(3) Improving response and recovery from outbreaks and to

In an effort at better management, the FSWG is seeking to coordinate the activities of agencies that oversee food issues, and has created two new positions:

1. Deputy Commissioner for Foods, to oversee and coordinate FDA's efforts on food, including food safety. This position, reporting to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, will be empowered to restructure and revitalize FDA’s activities and work with USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, and other agencies, in developing a new food safety system. --This is the new Michael Taylor position...

To continue reading about the Food Safety Working Group's new initiatives, click here....

The Obamas In Russia, Day 2: Kremlin Reception

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama toured the Kremlin today, following the President's breakfast with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Above, the President shakes hands with Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill.

At left, the First Lady chats with Russian First Lady Svetlana Medvedeva, wife of President Dmitry Medvedev.

*Related: Dinner at Gorki is here; From Russia With Love Part I is here; Part II is here. *Getty Images

Live, Today: Food Safety Working Group Issues "Key Findings" & Announces Michael Taylor As "Special Advisor On Food" For FDA...?

Is Food Safety A Class Issue?
Today at 1:30 PM Eastern time (US) the Food Safety Working Group will livestream its "key findings" at both WhiteHouse.gov and Food Safety Working Group. In a press conference at the Eisenhower Executive Building in DC, Vice President Joe Biden, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will discuss exactly what the FSWG has been doing since President Obama established it in March in a good effort to coordinate and upgrade the nation's food safety system. Vice President Biden, who is the chair of the Middle Class Task Force, will highlight and discuss the importance of food safety to middle class families, according to the press advisory. Your intrepid blogger is very interested in hearing this particular take on food safety, because y'know, food-borne pathogens are really free radicals. Food borne pathogens don't discriminate on the basis of age, gender, or income--although they do tend to kill kids and the elderly at a higher rate of frequency than, say, the average middle-class, healthy 45-year-old. The Obama admin likes to intermix its policy platforms, but these days, perhaps someone from the Office of Faith-Based Partnerships should be showing up at this meeting, too. After the live stream, Secretaries Vilsack and Sebelius will take questions at the White House Facebook page. (Photo above: VP Biden and Sec. Vilsack speak in Pennsylvania at one of the Rural Tour events, a swell cross-country listening tour the Secretary is doing this summer in rural communities).

Are We In The 21st Century? Michael Taylor Could Help...
There should be a lot to talk about today, given the fact that USDA still has no leader for its own meat safety division, the Food Safety and Inspection Service, and given the fact that there's a huge Class 1 (you could die) beef recall still going on. Nestlé recalled its E coli-contaminated Tollhouse Cookie Dough on June 18, but while shopping on July 4, your intrepid blogger still found lots at the supermarket (photo above), and had found recalled cookie dough the week before, too. This is because all recalls are VOLUNTARY, even when food that could kill you--or cause permanent, life-altering illness--has been sent into the marketplace. The only progressive piece of Food Safety reform that has occurred in the Obama era, to date, is a ban on downer cows being allowed to be slaughtered and put into the food chain. Downer cows aren't cattle with depressive disorders, BTW, they're cattle that are too ill to walk the slaughtering line. Yep, before President Obama took office, sick cows were routinely winding up on dinner plates, both here at home and abroad. When he established the Food Safety Working Group, the President pledged to "bring food safety into the 21st century." Most of America's still partying like it's 1999, however. According to Reuters, during today's livestream, a new Deputy Commissioner of Food will be announced; this individual will be responsible for coordinating food safety among the federal agencies that monitor it. But Food Safety insiders tell Ob Fo that Michael Taylor, who's previously worked within the government food safety agencies, will be named as the Special Advisor on Food for FDA.

How Food Safety Is Monitored in America: An Obama Dinner As Object Lesson
There are currently twelve different regulatory agencies that can impact the Obama cupcakes on your Lincoln china, and this hasn't changed seven months into the Obama Era. For instance, the menu for the Obama's Charm Offensive Dinner, an early shindig that was designed to get reluctant Republicans on board with the President's program, included salmon from Canada, produce from at least three different states, dairy products, grains, and wine. Thus the meal was regulated by the USDA, the FDA, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the Bureau of Commerce. That's a lot of federal activity for a couple hours of wooing Republicans! But that's how it goes in US food safety. The regulations and requirements that exist are scattered like confetti among a pile of different agencies. This hasn't served America's eaters very well. (Above: A place setting from the Charm Offensive dinner)

*Photos: Biden/Vilsack from USDA Press Office; Tollhouse Dough by Obama Foodorama; Place Setting by Pete Souza/White House

Greenpeace Provides Dessert After Obama/Medvedev Dinner At Gorki

...or at least a visual dessert. Greenpeace beamed the laser-generated light display, above, onto a bridge by the Moscow hotel the Obamas are staying in this evening. The First Family is occupying the Presidential suite of the five-star Marriott Grand Hotel on Tverskaya Street, which is on the road leading to the Kremlin. The message says "Leaders Act Save Climate," in case you can't read it, and it's interesting that it's in English....

*Related: Dinner with the Medvedevs is here; From Russia With Love Part I is here; Part II is here; President Medvedev on Sausages and Freedom is here. Reuters photo.

The Obamas Dine With The Medvedevs At Gorki Residence: Sausages and Freedom On The Menu

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama dined with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev and his wife Svetlana at the presidential residence in Gorki this evening. Gorki is a suburban neighborhood outside of downtown Moscow, and the presidential residence is a park-like compound. President Medvedev gave the Obamas a tour of the grounds, which include a helicopter landing pad, an underground bunker, a swimming pool and tennis courts.

Inside the residence, a robotic cat was present, and it took tiny, secret digital photos with the camera inserted in its tail (below).

*From Russia With Love Part I is here; Part II is here; President Medvedev on Sausages and Freedom is here. Reuters photos.

Independence Day Awesome: Foo Fighters At The White House July 4th Barbecue

Via Stereogum, this fun pic of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, post-sound check for the Obama Family July 4th barbecue on the South Lawn of the White House (pic from patti_heck, and there are some more excellent ones in her flickr photo stream). Later, during the barbecue, the Foos premiered a new song, Wheels:

The Senate Agriculture Committee, Health Care Reform, And The Health Care Lobby: Thoughts On Influence & Awareness

If You're On The Senate Finance Committee AND The Senate Agriculture Committee, Is There A Deep Conflict In Your Psyche Over Health Care Reform And Food Policy?
According to a story in today's Washington Post, hospitals and medical groups have hired more than 350 former government staff members and retired members of Congress in hopes of influencing those currently running the show on Capitol Hill during the ongoing debates on health care reform. The interesting graphic, above, shows these staffers-turned-lobbyists, but equally interesting is the fact that a group of Senators on the Senate Finance Committee, which is making the key decisions in the Health Care debate, are also current members of the Senate Agriculture committee (as well as Ag committee members from the 110th congress): Sens. Charles Grassley (IA), Max Baucus (Mont), Blanche Lincoln (Ark), Kent Conrad (ND), Mike Crapo (UT), Debbie Stabenow (Mich), Pat Roberts (Kan).

Senators Crapo, Lincoln, and Stabenow are all on the Senate Subcommittee on Nutrition and Food Assistance, too. As it is now beyond argument that health care reform cannot be achieved without dramatic reforms in America's eating habits (thanks to food-related diseases such as diabetes and heart trouble burdening the the system with billions of dollars in annual costs), it's worth noting the kind of agriculture each of these Senators represent. All of their states are heavily invested in industrialized agriculture, and recently, the American Medical Association announced that some of the "side effects" of industrialized ag practices, such as antibiotic resistance, airborne pollution, and climate change, are highly detrimental to human health. The AMA is so serious about this connection that it announced a pledge to support local, sustainable and organic agriculture practices. In fact, there's a building national movement to alter food policy within health care institutions, led by medicos such as Dr. Preston Maring, who is bringing farmers' markets directly to hospitals. He's just one of many doctors who have taken personal action to make this kind of change. And certainly the relationship between food and health care reform is an issue that the Obama administration is critically aware of; First Lady Michelle Obama has given a series of speeches in the last month that highlight the relationship between changing eating habits and reducing health care costs (most recently at Unity Health Care, last week).

Because so many of the Senators on the Finance Committee have a critical interest in maintaining the AgriBusiness status quo in their role as Ag Committee members, it's worth pondering what kind of an influence they--and their staffers-turned-lobbyists--could potentially have on reform debates. The Senators listed above are bulldogs about protecting their constituents' rights to carry on with AgriBusiness as usual; in a series of recent hearings over various food policy/Ag Bills, they've collectively managed to get reducing monetary caps for Ag subsidies off the table, hijacked a couple critical elements out of food safety initiatives, and ensured that climate change initiatives got watered down in ACES...among other things. Will the American Medical Association's new interest in a different kind of Ag system have any impact at all? And are the staffers-turned-lobbyists as protective of Big Ag practices as their former bosses, the Senators? Will their experience working with Ag state deciders have any impact on what they're lobbying for, in terms of an awareness of the need for food policy to be directly included in health policy initiatives--? And will anyone have an awareness of the connections between the role industrialized agriculture and the USDA, through an ongoing, historic program of subsidizing foods that are not the best nutritional choices, particularly for school lunch programs--have played in our current epidemic of food-related disease (those alarming statistics of obese children are haunting...)?? It will be interesting to see how it all develops, because it's alllll connected, after all...

And this doesn't even begin to address the problems of having lobbyists influence the discussion, in general. Over at Beyond Green, Tom Laskawy parses this part of the equation.

*Go here to see the full-size graphic at Washington Post, and here to read the full story...

The Obamas In Moscow: Day 1, Part 2

Michelle Michalenko, who cooks at the US Embassy in Moscow, took these pix of President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama during their meet n' greet today at the embassy. Above: The President speaks to staffers while First Lady Michelle Obama looks on; US Ambassador John Byrle is at right.

The President chatted with the Marines assigned to the embassy, and posed for this shot, above.

The First Lady signed autographs and chatted with the excited children of Embassy staff, above. Photos by Michelle Michalenko. She tweets: @soireechef.

The Obamas In Moscow, Day 1

The Obamas have arrived in Moscow, and since it's already early evening there, they've had a full day of activities. President Obama met with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev at the Kremlin; Jake Tapper of ABC does a good sum-up of the issues under discussion here. In advance of President Obama's breakfast tomorrow morning with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Ed Henry of CNN, who by the way is very nice about tweeting food details to your intrepid blogger when he's on the road with the WH press pool, ponders who's really running the government in Russia here. The Washington Post does a full wrap of the joint Obama/Medvedev news conference, with tranlation, here. Above: President Obama and President Medvedev meet at the Kremlin.

First Lady Michelle Obama and daughters Sasha and Malia toured the Kremlin with Russian first Lady Svetlana Medvedeva (above). They visited the Kremlin's Winter Garden and the Cathedral of the Assumption, and the Armory, which has a huge collection of imperial regalia, and the State Diamond Fund, home to the 190-carat Orlov diamond as well as the world's largest sapphire.

After the Kremlin, the Obamas went to the US Embassy to meet with staff, and have a late lunch. Michelle Michalenko, one of the chefs at the US Embassy, Tweeted a bit while the Obamas met with staffers (@soireechef). Ms. Michalenko wrote that she got to shake hands with the President and First Lady, and then Mrs. Obama signed autographs for staffers' kids, while the President shook hands with the Marines.

This evening, the President and First Lady are scheduled to have dinner with President Medvedev and Lady Medvedeva at Gorki, the presidential residence.

*Related: President Medvedev on Sausages and Freedom.
*Photo at top of post by Pete Souza/White House; First Lady photo by Vladimir Rodionov/AP

The Ghosts Of White House Kitchens Past: Happy Birthday George Bush!

From the archive of White House foodie history: Today is President George Bush's 63rd birthday. The photo, above, is of the former president celebrating his 60th birthday at the White House. The lovely cake was made by former White House Executive Pastry Chef Thaddeus DuBois, who had a two-year run in the position and worked with current Executive Chef Cris Comerford. Dubois was hired following the retirement of Exec Pastry Chef Roland Mesnier, who served at the White House for 25 years. DuBois lasted a brief two years before current Exec Pastry Chef Bill Yosses came on. The multi-tiered style of the cake, with decorative sugar plaques, animals (the bulldog is from President Bush's alma mater, Yale) and a sugar replica of the White House, is very much a trope in White House cake designs for holidays and special events.

Chef Yosses (in pic) went to work full time at the White House in January, 2007, although he'd worked as a "seasonal hire" during the 2006 holiday season. President Obama refers to Chef Yosses as "The Crust Master," and has spoken glowingly about his pie-mkaing skills, as has First Lady Michelle Obama.

*During the Bush years, the White House used to run an awesome, fun series of online Q&As with members of the kitchen and gardening staff, in which the public could submit questions. Go here to read one with Chef DuBois.

*Photos by White House photographer Shealah Craighead.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev: The "Sausages And Freedom" Interview

As President Obama arrives in Moscow to engage in discussions on reducing nuclear weapons, cooperating on security, non-proliferation and missile defense, and expanding the ties between American and Russian society and business, it's worth noting the very complicated dynamic between the Russian government and the Russian citizenry, as the ongoing transition to Democracy continues, and the idea of "civil society" is still being developed. In April, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev gave his first-ever interview to Novaya Gazeta, a newspaper that has been a harsh critic of the current administration. President Medevedev spoke with writer Dmitry Muratov about what "civil society" means in the context of difficult economic times, when fundamentals such as food and shelter are very expensive, and unemployment is high (photo: President Medvedev during the interview). An excerpt:

A social contract: Once again about sausages and freedom

NOVAYA GAZETA: On April 15 you will host the Presidential Civil Society Institutions and Human Rights Council....Do I understand that today civil society is more important to you then that of “plainclothes men”?

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: You know, civil society is a category that we have not fully absorbed in Russia. Throughout the world civil society is the flip side of the state. The state is not only a political machine, it is also a form of organising life in society, one that is based on state power and relies on the law, while civil society is the human dimension of any state. Though its members are governed by state legislation they often act according to human laws that, incidentally, do not always have a legal form. Still quite recently, many people did not understand the words civil society. A state is more or less clear. But what is civil society? A society of citizens? So we are all citizens of our country. And now there is the understanding that civil society is an integral non-governmental institution in any state. An institution that provides feedback. The organisations of people who do not hold office, but are nevertheless actively involved in the life of their country.

Therefore meetings and contacts between the President and representatives of civil society are indispensable. Let me emphasise: these relations are not easy for any authority, because all members of civil society and representatives of human rights organisations have a huge number of issues to raise with the government and leaders. They have a lot of questions, and these are questions the authorities do not always want to answer. But that is why such contacts must be systematic, including contacts within the framework of the Council you mentioned. I expect that this will be an interesting conversation. It will likely be hard, but therein lies its value.

NOVAYA GAZETA: For a few years now there has been an unspoken contract between state and society (or, more precisely, the majority of society): the state provides a given level of comfort and well-being, and in exchange society remains loyal to the state.

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: You mean “democracy in exchange for prosperity” or, say, “sausages in exchange for freedom”?

NOVAYA GAZETA: Yes. But now, in the absence of prosperity, what do you think a new contract could be? I will not even say the word thaw, but perhaps the defrosting [Alexander Auzan’s term] of society is pertinent? Since neither society nor the state can deal with the crisis alone, they will have to talk.

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: The idea of a social contract is certainly one of the brightest human ideas and has undoubtedly played a very significant role in the development of democratic institutions throughout the world. The origins of Rousseau’s idea are well-known, but if you refer to the modern social contract then I would say that its framework is laid out in our Constitution. The Constitution is a special agreement between on the one hand the state and, on the other, its citizens.

NOVAYA GAZETA: An agreement on what?

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: On how to exercise power in the territory of our state, of our country. In this context, the social contract refers to the partial assignment of authority, which by virtue of natural law belongs to the individual, to the state so that the state guarantees individual’s prosperity, life and liberty. But it seems to me that one should never oppose a stable and prosperous life, and a set of political rights and freedoms. You can not oppose democracy and well-being. On the other hand, it is clear that the inalienable rights and freedoms of the individual and citizen may be in jeopardy if society is unstable, if the elementary needs of individuals are not provided for, if people do not feel secure, if they do not receive their wages, if they are unable to buy basic foodstuffs, if their lives are threatened.

Therefore, I see no contradiction in your question to me. It is obvious that the social contract goes back not only to the well-known theories of the 17th and 18th centuries, but also to our Constitution.

NOVAYA GAZETA: Are you suggesting that you can offer Russia both freedom and prosperity?

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: Yes.

*Read the full interview here.

*Photo at top of post: Obama and Medvedev matyroshka dolls from a Moscow bazaar, via Foreign Policy Report

Interviewer Says White House Kitchen Garden Has Made First Lady Michelle Obama More Popular Than President Obama In Russia

The International News Media Focuses On The First Lady As The Obamas Head To Russia
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama depart for Russia today with daughters Malia and Sasha, to begin a week of foreign travel; they'll be in Moscow tomorrow through July 8 (pic: The First Family at Andrews Air Force Base, about to board Air Force One for the trip). In advance of the trip, the President gave his first interview to Russian media, which was shot on July 2 in the Map Room at the White House, and aired yesterday on ITAR-TASS/Rossiya TV. Under discussion: Russian-US relations, the nuclear threat, global security. The interviewer, who spoke pretty good English, said to the President: For the new President, your plate is awfully full, and then toward the end of the interview, brought up food issues (questions from the Interviewer are verbatim)...

Interviewer: How comfortable, your family -- your wife, your daughters, first of all, your mother-in-law -- (laughter) -- feel here in White House as a new home?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, you know, we’ve gotten used to it. When we first got here, obviously it’s much bigger and fancier than anything that we had lived in in the past. And what we’ve discovered is, is that -- the second and the third floor is where we live, and it is actually a very comfortable space. And the people, the staffs are just wonderful and very supportive. What I haven’t gotten used to is still the difference of being President where you can’t just go down to the street and go to the local restaurant or go to the --

Interviewer: But you visited a restaurant two weeks ago.

THE PRESIDENT: Yes, we did, but these days now I have 15 Secret Service cars -- (laughter) -- and helicopters and so I miss sometimes being able to just walk around like an ordinary person. But it’s a small sacrifice to make for the privilege.

Interviewer: Well, I tell you a secret, Mr. President. Maybe you don't know, but your wife, Michelle, may be more popular in Russia than you. You know why?

THE PRESIDENT: Why?

Interviewer: Because of the garden kitchen.

THE PRESIDENT: Oh.

Interviewer: Because kitchen gardens very popular in Russia, and when she started to make a kitchen garden around the White House she became very popular. But historically, role of the First Lady very important in the United States. What do you think about her role in your presidency?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, she’s done just an extraordinary job. Her first role is to make sure that our children are doing well. And our two girls, Malia and Sasha, are just special young ladies, and they have made the adjustment very well, and that’s because Michelle is such a good mother...And then she’s also, I think, been an inspiration to a lot of women here in the United States who combine careers with parenting. I think she is somebody who they can identify with because she’s had to balance a lot of different issues. So she’s doing a marvelous job. I’m very, very proud of her.

The Interviewer presented the President with an Obama Matryoshka doll at the end of their chat; these are the traditional folk craft nesting dolls that are popular in Russia (in pic: an Obama Matryoshka, and a Medvedev Matryoshka).

Interestingly, the AP news wire is also running a story on the First Lady today, which attempts to gauge her popularity among Russians, and compares her to Russian First Ladies, such as Raisa Gorbachev, and both current Russian First Ladies, including First Lady Svetlana Medvedeva (in pic). AP reporter Catrina Stewart writes:

[The First Lady] does not hesitate to speak her mind on a range of important social issues, such as health and education. Many Russians, traditionally conservative, look askance at such assertiveness.

"A wife should be sitting at home, creating comfort and cooking food," said Zoya Getmanova, a female pensioner living in Moscow. "She could express her opinions over the dinner table, but she shouldn't meddle in politics."

That's a bit odd, to quote a sole pensioner who has an archaic view of the role of women as The Voice of Russia, and imply that Mrs. Obama should not have any kind of policy platform; American First Ladies routinely adopt policy platforms. This is expected, and accepted. And apparently neither the AP writer nor the pensioner is aware that Mrs. Obama has said in many interviews--and public remarks--that having dinner with her family is one of the best parts of living in the White House. The mainstream media gets it oddly skewed, once gain.

*Read the full text of the ITAR-TASS/Rossiya TV interview here, at CQ Politics.

Independence Day Tea Party At Southfork Ranch

The Cons celebrated Independence Day in a very special way yesterday: There was a Tea Party at South Fork Ranch in Dallas. The anti-government shindig didn't get a ton of media coverage, but of course Ob Fo is ravingly interested, thanks to the food symbolism.

The Cons adopted Tea as their symbol of choice in February, as a nod to the historic pre-Revolutionary War tea dumping in Boston Harbor. On April 15, Tea Parties were held around America, and big crowds turned out to express dissatisfaction with all kinds of Obama admin initiatives. Ob Fo was at the DC Tea Party--which was extra interesting because there was no actual tea allowed, thanks to DC park service restirctions. And that particular party seemed to have been masterminded by Fox News; reporter Griff Jenkins was veddy veddy friendly with the DC organizers.

Yesterday's Tea Party in Dallas had a pretty specific set of objectives: Promoting limited government, fiscal responsibility, personal responsibility, the rule of law and national sovereignty. Organizers claimed that 50,000 people would show up to engage in fun activities such as mailing postcards to Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle, which demand (yet again...yawn) that she release the President's birth certificate (pic at the top of the post); the Cons are still trying to claim the President is not an Amerikan. But Dallas Morning News reports that the event had more like a couple hundred people attend--maybe. Of course Con Hottie Michelle Malkin was critically involved; check out her site here.

*Related: RNC CHair Michael Steele on teabaggery is here.

What Will Obama Foodorama Discuss On The Radio Tonight?

This evening, your intrepid blogger will be on CBS radio 830 WCCO for a chat about...the usual...with on-air talk maven Jearlyn Steele, who hosts Steele Talkin'. Tune in live! if you're in or near Minneapolis, Minnesota; or listen online here at 8:00 PM Eastern, 7:00 PM Central, 5:00 PM Pacific time.

With luck, we'll cover fun topics such as the Folk Foodways of the White House, Presidential and First Family eats during public outings, Obama food art, Senator-elect Al Franken, and, perhaps, people who insist on further demolishing their reputations by repeating false facts about the White House Kitchen Garden, even though they've already been publicly spanked--er, thoroughly corrected--on the topic. Looking forward to it!!

White House Independence Day Barbecue: A Unique Backyard, The "Unmistakable Joys of Being An American"

The Obama family gathered on the State Balcony of the South Portico of the White House to welcome 1,200 guests to their Independence Day barbecue, which honored military service people and their families, and included wounded veterans from the Walter Reed Medical Center (above). During the President's remarks, the First Family was flanked by 21 servicemen and one service woman, who'd been chosen by their own branches of the Armed Forces as special heroes.

The President said:

...although this backyard is a little bit unique, our gathering tonight is not so different from gatherings that are taking place all across the country, in parks and fields and backyards all across America. In small towns and big cities, folks are firing up grills, laughing with family and friends, and laying out a blanket in preparation for the big show. They're reliving the simple, unmistakable joys of being an American.

It was Malia Obama's eleventh birthday, and the President noted that when she was younger, he used to tell her that the fireworks were for her. "I'm not so sure she believes that anymore," he said, to laughter from the crowd. Malia had an American flag painted on her right cheek.

The President praised military service men and women, and promised continued support:

The United States of America is proud of you. I'm proud to be your Commander-in-Chief. And that's why, this Fourth of July, I renew my pledge to each and every one of you -- that for as long as I have that immeasurable honor, you will always have the equipment and support you need to get the job done. Your families will always be a priority of Michelle's and mine...

The President credited the “brave efforts” of U.S. troops for enabling the military to transfer control to all Iraqi cities and towns to Iraqi security forces this week. He said those efforts were allowing “a sovereign and united Iraq” to take control of its own destiny.

On the picnic menu: Grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, potato salad, watermelon slices, corn on the cob, garden salad with walnuts and cheese, ice cream, lemonade, Coke and Pepsi products, Sam Adams Light and Stoudts American Pale Ale (with a big American flag on the label) from the Adamstown, PA microbrewery. Grills were set up outdoors, and all the White House chefs worked the line, assisted by visiting culinary students from Brainfood, who have been interning in the kitchen this week.

The USO hosted the entertainment, and Jimmy Fallon, the host of NBC’s “Late Night,” emceed the event. The Marine Band performed (in pic, marching through the South Lawn). Singer Michelle Branch played a short set, and the Foo Fighters were the headliners. They got through about a half dozen of their hits, then stopped early to make way for the fireworks display on the National Mall, which started during the middle of their final song. There were lots of kid-friendly activities: Volleyball (above), basketball, face painting, Uncle Sam roaming around on ten-foot-tall stilts.

White House staff and their families and senior advisers also attended the bash. (Above: The President and First Lady shook hands with guests for about twenty minutes during the picnic).

*Press was pooled, and they were tossed out after the President's remarks. Photo credits, top to bottom: Alex Brandon, AP; AP; AP; Pete Souza/White House; Getty

Independence Day 2009: How We Got Here, What It Means, And Writing The Next Chapter In The American Story

At the White House this evening, the Independence Day picnic will honor military families, as President and Mrs. Obama continue to remind us all that without our heroic service men and women, who do far more than just bear arms in the name of their fellow Americans, the US would not be the great nation we're all privileged to live in. There'll be 1,200 guests at a barbecue on the South Lawn, and in keeping with good ol' American tradition, the menu is straight-on old school July 4th picnic: Grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, potato salad, watermelon slices, corn on the cob, garden salad with walnuts and cheese, ice cream, lemonade, Coke and Pepsi products, Sam Adams Light and Stoudts American Pale Ale (with a big American flag on the label) from the Adamstown, PA microbrewery. The Foo Fighters, Michelle Branch and the Marine Band will perform; Jimmy Fallon will emcee the event. Guests will be able to watch the awesome fireworks show that takes place over the Washington Monument when it's dark. Today is Malia's eleventh birthday; Happy Birthday Malia! (Pic: This AM, the President and First Lady arrive back at the White House from Camp David, where they were celebrating Malia's birthday)

It took a lot of hard work from the grassroots to get the President elected, the kind of revolutionary gumption and initiative that helped transform America from the original 13 Colonies to a great nation. This blog has archived the foodie elements of that drive for change (such as the cake, above, made by "dragonfly79," and the one at the top of the post, by Sarah Ramey); they're just some of the millions of Obama foodstuffs from Campaign Season. But it's a spirit that has threaded through the entire fabric of the cultural consciousness for more than two hundred years, which has flourished in times of peace and times of war, in times of plenty and times of hardship. Today, in his weekly address, President Obama perfectly sums this up:

Today, we are called to remember not only the day our country was born – we are also called to remember the indomitable spirit of the first American citizens who made that day possible. We are called to remember how unlikely it was that our American experiment would succeed at all; that a small band of patriots would declare Independence from a powerful empire; and that they would form, in the new world, what the old world had never known – a government of, by, and for the people. That unyielding spirit is what defines us as Americans.

Bake sales, pancake breakfasts, picnics, and pot-luck dinners were some of the critical grassroots tools used to focus efforts to get the President elected. These speak to the creativity that is inherent in the American Spirit, to a longing for a sweeter, kinder time, to the values of making something enduring and transcendent from scratch--whether it's a cake, or a new America. Now, the President and First Lady are asking everyone to focus this kind of 'culinary passion' on service; the Summer of Service campaign has key food initiatives, such as food bank drives and community garden projects (yep, had to toss a pitch in for this, because it's a swell thing). Check out the United We Serve website here, to start your own project. It's all a part of the First Lady's campaign to encourage the country to re-think the connections between food and health, which is vitally important to enacting change, across the board, in our country. It was the small, local militias organizing into a larger army for the greater good of a new America that transformed the collection of colonies into a nation; and the same is true now, when local action is critical to create change, no matter what action theatre is chosen, as we "write the next chapter in the American story." And we're lucky to be able to do so. Listen to The President's Independence Day message, here. (The lovely cake, above, was made by Brian Ferris, who blogs at Traditional Cake)

Happy Fourth of July To All!

Adios, Sarah Palin

Your intrepid blogger was a very bizzy baker during Campaign Season, and created foodie iconography for a variety of candidates, including this Sarah Palin cupcake, which became pretty popular on the internets. Now it's time to wish her a final farewell, as Governor Palin steps down from office and rides her domesticated moose off into obscurity. Or into a campaign for 2012...but good luck with all that.

White House Fourth of July Barbecue Honors Military Families; Foo Fighters Will Perform

Obama daughter Malia will share her 11th birthday tomorrow with more than 1,200 guests for the big Independence Day bash at the White House, hosted by President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. The event will honor military service people and their families, and include White House staff and their families, too. As a side note, this is the first Obama family birthday to be celebrated at the White House, and may be the only one for 2009. The First Lady's birthday was just prior to Inauguration Day, and last month, Sasha's birthday was celebrated in France. In August, during President Obama's birthday, the family will most likely be on Martha's Vineyard, an island in the Atlantic off the coast of Massachusetts, for a brief vacation.

Perhaps Malia will get all hipster now that she's a tween, because the Foo Fighters will be playing at the Independence Day picnic, thanks to intense lobbying by staffers who really are hipsters (Foos, in pic). The Marine Band will also perform, and the event will culminate with fireworks. The South Lawn provides the best view in DC of the fireworks display that takes place each year over the Washington Monument.

Special event souvenir stadium cups have been created by JH Specialty, an Indiana firm (if you squint, you can see the special logo in the photo). Of course American flags and other traditional Fourth of July swag will be all over the South Lawn, too.

The White House Culinary Academy Welcomes Students From Brainfood

The White House Culinary Academy has been going at full boil this week. Ten kids from DC non-profit Brainfood have joined the White House chefs in prepping for the huge 4th of July picnic for military families the Obamas are hosting tomorrow.

Brainfood runs a series of after-school and summer culinary programs for high school students that includes classes ranging from kitchen safety to international cuisine. It's geared toward helping kids learn all kinds of life skills using the culi arts as a focus, rather than creating future chefs. The Brainfood students have gotten excellent cooking tips as they worked alongside Exec Chef Cris Comerford, assistant chef Sam Kass, Exec Pastry Chef Bill Yosses, and his assitant Susan Morrison. A big job this week has been shucking corn, because 1,200 guests are invited to the July 4 BBQ (above: Sam Kass with Brainfood kids). The visiting students also helped prep for last Thursday's White House Luau, as well as last Friday's staff picnic.

Of course the Brainfoodies visited the White House Kitchen Garden with Sam Kass (above), where they planted tomatoes, as well as got a lecture on the biocycler, the special composter that uses food waste from the kitchen. Giving tours of the garden has become a regular part of Chef Kass's schedule, in addition to everything else he does. He's also developing a culi and garden curriculum for schools. Above: Chef Kass and the biocycler

The President On Policy, Putin...And Pie

AP writer Jennifer Loven sat down with President Obama yesterday for a huge, comprehensive interview in advance of his departure for Russia on Sunday (pictured, above). They covered tons of ground, from unemployment through nuclear threats...and of course there were some food issues discussed. The President noted that good nutrition is as important as a good education in terms of "leveling the playing field" and making race a non-issue, an idea that has been a critical focus in the admin for months. And then things got giddy. At the end of the interview, Ms. Loven asked if there was time for "a couple quick, fun questions," and the President agreed to answer:

Ms. Loven: Tell people something about the White House that they might know, some secret about this building that they might not know.

President Obama: Some secret about — the pastry chef here makes the best pie I've ever tasted, and that is causing big problems for Michelle and myself. I mean, whatever you, whatever pie you like, he will make it, and it will be the best pie you've ever eaten. And so we are having to figure out how to resist ordering pie every night.

It's pretty amusing that Ms. Loven was fishing for perhaps a ghost story, or a detail about the Lincoln Bedroom, but the President instead answered with praise for Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses, whom he's previously referred to as 'The Crust Master.' That's the kind of thing that seals his rep as the foodiest president since Thomas Jefferson. In a March interview with Oprah, the First Lady noted that the White House pie is "dangerously good."

*Pastry Chef Yosses has been at the White House since 2007, and formerly worked at NY restaurants Bouley and Citarella, and helped open Paul Newman's Westport, Connecticut restaurant Dressing Room. He's also the co-author of Amazon bestseller Desserts for Dummies. A recipe for his cobbler is here. Jennifer Loven is the President of the White House Correspondent's Association, and she sat beside the President during the recent Nerd Prom, the annual black-tie affair at which the President is gently roasted. This year, Ms. Loven was critically involved in the Obama Bread Bye-Bye. Other Ob Fo coverage of the dinner is here.

*AP photo.

Lunch Counter Sit Ins And The Civil Rights Act

President Obama noted the 45th anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act today. Lunch counter sit-ins were a major part of the years-long non-violent protest campaigns that ultimately led to the passage of the Act, so of course these are highlighted in the President's remarks:

Forty-five years ago today, President Johnson signed into law historic legislation that moved America closer toward fulfilling the dream of our founding – a dream of opportunity, equality, and justice for all. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended legal discrimination, helping grant all Americans equal justice under the law – no matter what their gender or the color of their skin. The Civil Rights Act was born during Freedom Summer 1963, but its passage was only possible because generations of Americans of all backgrounds stood up, sat down, and marched in freedom’s cause. Once it was signed into law, a renewed pledge was made to all Americans not to deny any man a seat at a lunch counter, not to deny any woman an opportunity in the workplace, and not to deny any child a chance to make the most of their God-given potential. But while the Civil Rights Act opened doors of freedom and opportunity, we know that far too many inequities and barriers remain in the African-American community and across this country. And we must continue to break down these barriers in our laws, our policies, and our hearts so that we can not only fulfill the full promise of the Civil Rights Act, but perfect the union that our founders created two hundred and thirty-three years ago this week.

*Photo of the President this morning via Getty. Sit in photo from UPI: North Carolina A&T college students – Ronald Martin, Robert Patterson and Mark Martin – sat down to integrate this Greensboro, N.C., Woolworth lunch counter on Feb. 2, 1960

Huffington Post Calls It A Food Fight; Really, It's A Fact "Fright" To Claim The White House Kitchen Garden Is Contaminated

The White House Kitchen Garden Gets Sludged Again
Much thanks to all the readers who wrote in about Andrew Kimbrell's The Obama Organic Family Garden: Swimming in Sludge? which materialized out of the pooposphere of poor fact checking on Huffington Post last night. Mr. Kimbrell was sourcing his story on lead contamination at the White House directly from the June 17 Mother Jones story by Josh Harkinson, Did Sewage Sludge Lace The White House Veggie Garden With Lead? --which Ob Fo had already dismantled. But apparently Mr. Kimbrell doesn't read Obama Foodorama. Or he just really, really wanted to write about sewage sludge, and suggesting that the Obamas are "swimming in it" seemed like a savvy turn of phrase (Above: First Lady Michelle Obama at the recent summer garden harvest, with students from Bancroft Elementary School)

Anyway, Ob Fo posted a piece correcting the record on Huffington Post earlier today, which gives a big dose of lead fact checking to Mr. Kimbrell's piece--and to the Mother Jones story again (HuffPostGreen is tweeting this as Food Fight!). Regular Ob Fo readers will recognize the response as a shortened version of the interviews with Dr. Kimberly Gray of Northwestern University, Dr. Gabriel Filippelli of Indiana University, and Dr. David L. Johnson of SUNY that previously appeared here at Ob Fo about the same lead myths.

But Mr. Kimbrell also apparently failed to notice Mother Jones's June 24 update to Harkinson's post on sewage sludge, which says:

UPDATE: The blog Obama Foodorama interviewed lead experts who pointed out that 93 ppm is not an unusual level of lead in urban soils. That level is still well above natural levels and the EPA's own 56 ppm "ecological soil screening level"---hence my reasonable assertion that the garden is "contaminated with lead"--but the contamination could also be the product of old exhaust from lead-based fuel. Of course, it won't be possible to know the background lead level on the South Lawn unless someone sampled it before sludge was applied (a White House spokesman did not return a phone call). Given that lead levels in sludge can legally be way higher than what was found on the Obama garden, I still believe lead could be a factor in the 93 ppm, but how much of a factor will be hard to say.

Okay, the last sentence makes no sense...lead IS a factor in the 93 ppm, so perhaps the writer means sludge...but Mother Jones did make a nod at clarification.

But That Update Didn't Include A Conversation That The Mother Jones Writer Had Which Further Corrected The Record
Dr. Filippelli, the soils expert quoted in both of Ob Fo's pieces, has just e-mailed this bit of alarming info:

I was already contacted by the original author [Harkinson] of the Mother Jones piece, and I explained on the phone why I would not be concerned by those Pb levels, and why indeed the sludge may have not had any negative impacts on the garden soil itself, at least in terms of heavy metals.

This particular conversation wasn't mentioned in Mother Jones's update, perhaps because it would bust their story.

Anyway, it continues to interest your intrepid blogger that some of the people who are most likely to take media stabs at the White House Kitchen Garden are those who profess themselves to be champions of environmental stewardship and of a food system that's local, sustainable, and organic. Mr. Kimbrell is executive director of the Center For Food Safety, which has done good work in raising awareness about important food issues. It's unclear what could have possibly possessed him to not fact check a piece on such a high-profile topic as the WHKG, and urban gardening and lead issues in general. It's also unclear why such a terrific project as the garden is the subject of continuing attempts at malignment from other folks who are supposedly working to promote the kind of changes that the garden itself seems to symbolize. Many other food and gardening blogs posted about the Mother Jones sludge/lead contamination, too, without fact checking. Even very reputable ones.

The other bizarre element to the whole bashing thing is that anyone who thinks the White House left a single stone unturned in planning the garden is...what's the most delicate, diplomatic, term? Oh yeah, silly. The White House was well aware that the first food garden planted on the campus since WWII was going to be big news. Of course all details were accounted for. Of course appropriate testing was conducted. The White House has the finest minds in America, experts in every field, available for consultation. It's beyond silly to imagine that the garden wasn't thoroughly "vetted."

There's no question that toxic sludge issues are a critical part of the environmental conversation in America, and something that deserves continued coverage. But attempting to use the White House Kitchen Garden as the poster object for this is ridiculous.

As a side note: Still giggling over Mr. Kimbrell calling the White House Kitchen Garden "The Obama Organic Family Garden." OOFG is the sound your intrepid blogger makes when reading specious things about the White House Kitchen Garden.

*Photos by Samantha Appleton/White House

Cartographies of Chowbama: The Obamas Ate Here Map

The tekfabulous Alex Nicholson, who is the food writer for BrightestYoungThings, has created a really fun Google map of all the places the Obamas have eaten in DC. Even better, each of the cute/annoying map pins that show up on the interactive version of the map has a link to a blogpost that covers the specific Obama visit (Ob Fo's the one for The Source, where First Lady Michelle Obama recently celebrated Social Secretary Desiree Roger's fiftieth birthday). There's also addresses and phone numbers, website links, and review links in each map-pin info bubble.

Ms. Nicholson has just beat the DC tourism board to the punch, because this kind of map will be huuuugely popular with summer tourists; both Chicago and the island of O'ahu feature "Obama Ate Here" tours, which are major attractions. And speaking of ate here...the chair in the pic is from The Dairy Godmother, where the President took Malia and Sasha for a pre-Father's day frozen custard treat.

Thanks Alex!

The Annual Salary Report For White House Staff...

The White House has just released its annual salary report to Congress, which is also being publicly disclosed on the White House website, in the "interest of transparency." Members of the Office of Management and Budget, military attaches, and domestic staff are left off the list, so nope, there's no salary report for Executive Chef Cris Comerford, or Food Initiative Coordinator Sam Kass, or Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses, or Bee Keeper Charlie Brandts, or White House Kitchen Garden designer Dale Haney, for that matter; food issues are out of the mix, salarywise (Above: The White House has yet to release an official group photo of kitchen staff; this was shot at the 2009 Easter Egg Roll: L to R, assistant pastry chef Susan Morris; assistant chef Tafari Campbell; Executive sous chef Tommy Kurpradit; Executive chef Cris Comerford; volunteer Pamela Peevey; Executive Pastry chef Bill Yosses. Sam Kass was answering kids' questions down by the garden...)

And of course, the person who is most vitally important to food issues in the White House doesn't receive a salary: First Lady Michelle Obama. First Ladies, like most political spouses, never get salaries. But honestly? Mrs. Obama is completely priceless, in terms of all the good work she's done for food initiatives in the last 162 days, and that's not just blogger hyperbole. The First Lady has emerged as the leader of the US food movement at a point in time when the food movement is in dire need of having its attention focused on critical issues. Author Michael Pollan called the White House Kitchen Garden "the most important event in sustainable agriculture of the year," and that wasn't hyperbole, either. The garden is everything from a potent symbol to a conversation starter to a crucial educational tool to a living metaphor that reminds us of old-school agrarian American values. But far beyond the garden, the First Lady has given a series of unprecedented speeches that highlight the importance of nutrition and health, and has filled these with the truth about the negative impact of processed and fast foods, in a way that's done more to raise awareness on these issues than any public service campaign ever has. On Monday, her remarks at Unity Health Care Center in Washington, DC, again re-iterated the connection between the epidemic of food-created diseases in the population and the need to change this to enact health care reform--and to rejuvenate communities. She's also rolled up her sleeves and gone to work on all kinds of service initiatives, all involving food and health and children and schools--and brought in everyone around her to do the same--as well as inspired millions of people across the country. That's priceless. As Ob Fo has said before, many of the President's policy agendas simply can't be accomplished without the companion initiatives that the First Lady has engaged with.

One staffer who is very important to the foodie goings-on at the White House who does have a salary disclosure: White House Social Secretary Desiree Rogers (in pic). She's listed as making $113,000.00 annually, and she's responsible for all social events involving food, in addition to all the cultural events that have gone on at the White House. Below, the annual salaries of those who've had repeat appearances here at Ob Fo; you can download the entire White House Salary list here [PDF].

Rahm Emanuel $172,200 Chief of Staff and Assistant to the President
Robert Gibbs $172,200 Assistant to the President and Press Secretary
Valerie Jarrett $172,000 Senior Advisor and Assistant To The President For Intergovernmental Affairs and Engagement
Susan Sher $172,000 Special Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff For The First lady
Katie McCormick-Lelyveld $84,000 Director and Press Secretary For The First lady
David Axelrod $172,200 Assistant to The President and Senior Advisor
Reggie Love $102,000 Special Assistant to the President and Personal Aide To The President
Eugene Kang $47,151 Special Projects Coordinator

Rural Tour Plays First Gig In Pennsylvania

The Summer Secretaries Rural Tour website has now gone live! Visit it here. The cross-country listening extravaganza will also be Tweeted by staffers on tour with Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack--follow the fun @RuralTour.

Today's event was in Wattsburg, PA, and Secretary Vilsack was joined by Vice President Joe Biden and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke. They discussed rural broadband issues with a big crowd at Seneca High School.

*Thanks, Amanda!

A Partial Recall List For E coli Contaminated JBS Swift Beef...

Although USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service is bound by its own legal dictates to release the names of retailers who have received food that's involved in a Class 1 (you could die) Recall, they haven't done so for the 421,000 pounds of E coli 0157:H7 contaminated beef recalled this week by JBS Swift. Happily, the blogosphere has filled in some of the blanks, so below is a partial list of places that are known to be harboring the meat (and thanks to eFoodAlert and Marler Blog). Check the websites of these stores for more specifics. And please note: If you're returning potentially contaminated product to a store, use plastic gloves when handling the package, or slip your hands into plastic baggies. Wipe down any place the product has touched in your refrigerator or freezer with an antibacterial; yep, cross contamination is an issue. The US list:

* Bloom and Food Lion Stores in Georgia, South Carolina and Virginia – beef cuts and ground beef
* CostCo – steaks, ribs, ground beef
* Food 4 Less – ground beef, 15%
* Fry's Food and Drug Stores – ground beef
* Hannaford Bros. Co. – beef cuts and ground beef
* Kroger – ground beef
* Price Chopper – ground beef and beef loin bottom sirloin steaks
* Roundy's Supermarkets, Inc., including Pick 'n Save, Copps and Rainbow stores – beef cuts and fresh ground beef
* Smith's Food and Drug Stores – ground beef
* Smith's Food and Drug Stores in Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming – beef cuts and ground beef
* Stop & Shop Supermarket Company – ground beef
* WinCo Foods, LLC Stores in Idaho and Oregon – boneless bottom round roast, steak, carne asada, ground beef

The meat went across the border, so if you're in Canada, here's the list for you:

Ontario: Cash & Carry,Real Canadian Wholesale Club, Dominion, Extra Foods, Fortinos, Freshmart, Loblaws, No Frills, Real Canadian Superstore, Loblaw Superstore, Valu-mart, Your Independent Grocer, Zehrs, Westfair, Sue’s Market (205 Don Head Village Blvd., Richmond Hill)
* Québec: AXEP, Intermarché, Loblaws, Entrepôt Presto, Club Entrepôt Provigo, Provigo
* Atlantic Provinces: Cash & Carry, Real Canadian Wholesale Club, Dominion, Freshmart, Red & White, Quick Mart, Save Easy, Atlantic Superstore, Valu-mar

Michael Steele, Obama Phood Phrase Stylist

From the Six Degrees of Obama Foodorama playbook: Early this AM on Morning Joe, RNC Chairman Michael Steele commented on Senator Al Franken finally getting his seat, and the Dems having an unstoppable majority:

"I can say without hesitation that this government is totally theirs...Everything that comes out of it and everything that results from it is on their plate."

*Listen to Mr. Steele's glee here.

*H/T Taegan Goodard's Political Wire

The Food Whacktivists Are Back...

Like Any Political Movement, The Food World Has Its Own Share Of Conspiracy Theorists
The food movement is loaded with all kinds of energetic groups, working hard to make much needed changes across the board, but it also has its own contingent of very loud conspiracy theorists, who tend to make Mulder and Sculley look like dilettantes. The conspiracy theories about the White House Kitchen Garden that have emerged over the last few weeks--what Baltimore Sun writer Susan Reimer has dubbed "Watercressgate"--are minor compared with the intense level of craziness that has surrounded the food safety bills that have been under consideration on the Hill during the 111th Congress.

Starting around March, conspiracy theorists were focused on Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)'s HR 875, the Food Safety Modernization Act, and claimed it would do all kinds of things like prohibit home gardening, ban backyard chicken flocks, as well as demolish small farmers. Rep. DeLauro's DC office had to put out repeated press advisories debunking the "accusations," because these were all over the blogosphere, from blips on Twitter to impassioned, rambling videos on Youtube. And now, the Food Whacktivists are at it again, with a new campaign that's even more loaded with nuttiness, and volatile language, and misinformation. The target now is HR 2749, the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009, which seeks to coordinate food safety oversight powers within the FDA. The Bill has been marked up and passed out of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee...with some major changes and loss of power for FDA. More than likely, there will be little movement on the Bill any time soon, despite the current problems with massive recalls going on (a new one today!). But all the same, the Whacktivists are vigorously assaulting the Bill. They're using the arguments of the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund, a group that has in the past raised some real issues about problems with food regulation, but which now has gone off the deep end in terms of hysteria (the org has previously focused on legalizing raw milk). The swastika symbol, at the top of this post, appeared in your intrepid blogger's in-box twelve times yesterday, with this headline: The Gestapo Food Act, H.R. 2749, Must Be Stopped. This branch of the mis-info campaign is being hosted on the Care2 site (a petition site that doesn't monitor any of its users' activity for nuttiness) and links directly back to the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. The commentary about the "Gestapo Food Act" is pure conspiracy theory, and suggests that the Bill is a not-so-secret attempt to privilege Big Agribusiness, enslave the American populace to evil corporate interests, destroy family and small farms, and enact mandatory animal culls and quarantines. But the ridiculously overblown anti-HR 2749 rhetoric is just plain nonsense. If you receive this particular e mail, do regard it as really bad spam.

Certainly there are issues that need to be addressed in each of the food safety Bills, but this kind of inflammatory mis-information campaign does nothing to promote real, progressive food safety reform. Of course, some of the comments with the Gestapo campaign are deliciously loony. Here's a fave--and insight into the level of discourse surrounding this Food Whacktivism:

If you do not send Obama back to Kenya, our nation will cease to have any Constitution and Bill of Rights that are being eliminated bit by bit, every day. Wake up Americans, this is all a scam to destroy us. NO more Freedoms, do not attempt to grow your own foods, that will be a felony.

'Nuff said.

*Go here for a full text of HR 2749, and for info about sponsors, etc.

Update: The excellent Naomi Starkman has sent in the Consumers Union's response that debunks all this conspiracy theory nonsense; they dismantle, piece by piece, all the nutty arguments of Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. *Phew."

The 60th Vote For President Obama...And The Second Vote From Minnesota, A Major Ag State

In the same way that President Obama's Dem 59 is from a major Ag state, so, too is Senator-elect Al Franken, who was finally certified the winner today in Minnesota's bitterly contested senatorial contest (above: Franken and wife Franni, at today's presser following the election announcement by the Minnesota Supreme Court)

Biggest Ag product in Minnesota: Hogs. Second: Dairy. Third: Beef.

Franken's got three of the hottest topics in Ag right there, sitting on his plate, what with disastro economic scenarios in pork and milk, and a building recall of contamo beef (hey, where is all that tainted beef, anyway?).

The other Big Ag products from Minnesota: Corn and Soybeans, the commodity cash crops that US Ag-opolies rely on. It'll be interesting to see what committees Franken joins, and which way he'll cast his votes. Seems like he's Minnesotan first, Democrat second, liberal third. That could make for a very progressive Ag thinker, or one who toes the corporate line...

Good's White House Kitchen Garden Extravaganza

Good magazine just posted an awesome folksy illustration of the White House Kitchen Garden on their website, which blows up into a major, detailed extravaganza when you click the link. Amusingly, Bo, The First Fluff, is also included, making himself useful. Good points out that the number of home gardens in the US has grown from 36 million in 2008 to 43 million in 2009...and this is projected to increase, according to the latest projections from a variety of sources.

Everybody Wants A Piece of Tom Vilsack

The Shadow Governor of All 50 States
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is the busiest among President Obama's Secretaries, running a department that has the broadest mandate of all the government agencies. There are more than 100,000 USDA employees, a budget of $113 billion, and the Secretary is responsible for overseeing the many, many arenas that Agriculture impacts, from food production to environmental stewardship to national security issues. He's also been planting gardens (with the First Lady, above), and promoting urban gardens, managing global food security, visiting stakeholders around the country, holding "listening sessions" for controversial new USDA proposals...among other things. In a recent interview with the Des Moines Register, the Secretary noted the hugeness of his job:

“It’s like being governor of all 50 states. The only difference is you’re not the boss. You’re kind of a boss. But you’re not the boss. The boss lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.”

The idea that Sec. Vilsack is shadow governor of the fifty states is an important one for food safety, since recalls from single jumbo processing plants, like the current massive beef recall from JBS Swift Beef Company, can easily and rapidly impact every state in America.

Last week, Sec. Vilsack spent a lot of time lobbying on Capitol Hill for the path-breaking new climate Bill (ACES) that passed on Friday in a tight vote in Congress. In his Register interview, Sec. Vilsack pointed out that USDA is intimately connected with climate change initiatives:

“You can’t talk about climate change unless you talk about the USDA. You want to talk about energy security? Energy independence? Biofuels? Renewable energy? Where is a lot of that going to happen? It’s going to happen in rural America. It’s going to happen with the help and assistance of business and industry loans and grants and programs from the USDA.”

A glossy new Recovery website, where all this activity can be tracked, just went live, here. It should also be noted that USDA is integral to climate change conversations because industrialized farming practices can have deep negative impacts on the environment, when not properly regulated. Keeping all of this in line, in conjunction with other Fed agencies, is a major part of Sec. Vilsack's job. He's recently been using the word "sustainability" a lot, and his focus on alternative energy use is a delicate balancing act, so as not to cause big fear among farmers (corn ethanol, for a variety of reasons, is worrisome to farmers, particulaly those in livestock production; they worry about feed prices rising....).

Right Now, Sec. V's Got Some Other Major Ag Challenges...
Dairy farmers, who are suffering a huge economic crisis, are resorting to dramatic moves to highlight their plight; in addition to lots of recent public rallies, some farmers are engaging in milk dumping to call attention to the need to redress plummeting milk floor prices (photo: An Iowa farmer and his son releasing milk from a holding vat in a symbolic protest). And the Pork Lobby is getting steadily more vocal, and asking for the Secretary's intervention. Pork producers suffered a major financial hit when the public stopped buying pork due to worries about Swine Flue. Sec. Vilsack went on a very public--and much needed--campaign to re-assure America that pork was safe to eat, and he was one of the biggest proponents of changing the name of the flu to H1N1, rather than Swine. But even now, with worries about the flu diminished, the pork industry hasn't recovered. Top-level state Ag officials, including Iowa's Bill Northey and Minnesota's Gene Hugoson, are requesting that Sec. Vilsack use USDA funds to give a $50 million boost to the porkonomy (their letter here, in PDF). The American Farm Bureau has made the same request. In a conference call with journalists back on June 19, Sec. Vilsack said:

"We are a little bit limited in terms of our capacity to purchase pork here at USDA...But we are in the process of trying to determine whether...we can create some flexibility in our authority that would allow us to be a little more aggressive than we have been. So, we're going to continue to look for ways to help these pork producers."

If the Secretary decides to get more aggressive, the pork products, under USDA's Section 32 funding, would potentially be put into USDA nutrition programs such as federal emergency food programs, food pantries, senior/elderly food programs, and other non-commercial food channels. Or the pork could wind up in school lunch programs--and that's already worrying some school Lunch advocates. It's all connected, after all....

Other Secretary Vilsack Fun:
On Saturday, the Secretary traveled to his home state to be inducted into the Iowa Democratic Party Hall of Fame. In 1999, Sec. V was the first Democrat governor elected in Iowa after a thirty-year reign of Republicans. He served for two terms, and managed to get major policy and development initiatives enacted in Iowa while governor. Before the ceremony, Sec. Vilsack told Des Moines Register's Tom Beaumont that he found adjusting to life in DC difficult before his wife, Christie, showed up (in pic):

...I had to do shopping and it’s not easy to get around Washington, especially if you haven’t driven for a while, which I had not because I was being driven eight years of the last nine. Getting in a car in Washington... — that is an experience I wouldn’t wish on anybody...So, I sort of developed a route to church. I developed a route to the Whole Foods store. I developed a route to the cleaners. And I developed a route to my running area...And then Christie came and my world just like expands dramatically, because she gets in a car and she’s got Washington all figured out. I don’t know how she’s got it figured out...I’m never sure where I am.

Sec. Vilsack added that if he can see the Washington monument, then he knows where he is. As a final note, Sec. Vilsack also just lost his chief of staff, John Norris. Norris has been sent elsewhere in the Obama admin, as was his wife, Jackie, who was First Lady Michelle Obama's chief of staff until she was recently replaced by Susan Sher.

*The Secretaries' Summer Tour: Look for Sec. Vilsack to show up in your rural community soon, when he visits venues around the country with his post-modern-emo band, Bizzy V and The Secretaries....No, really, he's going to be chatting up rural Americans, and figuring out how to best get the Recovery going. It should be a fascinating series of conversations, which begin tomorrow and go through September 30.

*Photo of milk dump by Chris Mackler/The Gazette. Tom Vilsack photo by AP; Photo with the First Lady via the White House; with Christie Vilsack, via Getty.