Bush's Retreat on Nuked School Food

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2001 Issue

The out-of-control political snowball known as the Bush administration was finally forced to admit it was moving too fast for its own good recently when the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) did a quick about-face on its plans to irradiate meat products served in the nation's school lunch programs.

On April 5 of this year, officials within the USDA announced that not only were they going to be giving the irradiation industry a jump-start by approving unlabeled irradiated meat for unwitting students, but they were also going to stop requiring the meat to undergo microbiological tests to determine if contaminants were present before sending it off for consumption. The proposal amounted to a huge bonanza for both the irradiation industry, which has been having a difficult time finding customers for its radiation-exposed foods, and the meat industry, which has been complaining about the additional costs of the food safety tests.

But it didn't take long for the Bush administration to realize that they'd stepped into a hornet's nest of political anger as the response to the proposals was met with instant opposition from food safety advocates and-more importantly from the political standpoint-parents.

A day after the nation's newspapers splashed the news of the two ill-conceived proposals on the front pages, the Bush administration was scurrying into damage control mode. Bush's USDA secretary, Ann Veneman, feeling the heat from an angry populace, announced that the controversial plans had never been approved by either her office or the White House. Claiming that she had only learned of the proposals the night before they were made widely public by an acting administrator of the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service, Veneman officially withdrew the proposed changes, wiped them clean from the USDA's Web site, and expressed her support for the current meat safety tests put into place during the Clinton administration.

While mainstream food safety advocates like the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) soiled themselves with excitement over the policy reversal, it should be noted that these kinds of "trial balloons" are common in new administrations and are usually strong indications of where they'd like to go in the very near future. The Bush administration-much like the Gore campaign-is an enthusiastic advocate of food irradiation and has repeatedly spoke disparagingly of the "cumbersome" federal regulations that the boys of big beef have to work with to get their meat to the table.

This policy reversal was more about the manner in which it was released than the merits of the proposal. Bush, with his MBA approach to government, doesn't like to be blindsided by underlings, even if he agrees with what they're saying. And, as was the case with EPA head Christie Whitman, Bush is not shy about pulling the rug out from under his staff to send a strong signal and "get them in line."

In other words, it's about spin and control. If Bush wasn't in the middle of huge political firestorms over his budget, campaign finance reform, and his corrupt energy policy, the team from Texas probably would have taken the time to package this draconian school lunch program proposal in a manner that they could stand behind. I can see it now, Bush would have stood proudly beside a weeping Texas rancher and declared that all "this good man" wants to do is provide some "good food to good kids." Viola! It would have been an official top-down initiative-with legs, as they say.

Don't forget this is the heyday of political payback time for a new administration that has not been shy about providing lulus to those he owes most for his new White House digs. And the Texas cattle ranchers have got their hands out waiting for their piece of the minced meat pie. "Don't worry boys," I can hear Bush declare in his best imitation of William S. Burroughs, "we just hit a little bump in the road. You'll get yours soon enough."

Esther Maynard
Assistant Editor
www.wildmatters.org