On the heels of the historic food safety bill’s passage and the toes of today’s House vote on the re-authorized Childhood Nutrition Act, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack appeared on the Colbert Report.
Announcing that “I love food,” Colbert welcomed Vilsack and proceeded to pepper him with surprisingly sharp questions. He wondered why the government subsidizes unhealthy foods and then spends all this money and effort to prevent kids from eating them. He even took a Glenn Beckish shot at the nutrition guidelines — “The food pyramid enslaves America!”
He closed with an attempt to get Vilsack to defend the USDA’s cheese marketing business. Unsurprisingly, Vilsack declined to engage him, instead presenting Colbert with a sculpture of his head made out of Organic Valley cheddar.
Said the host, “It may be cheddar, but I have to say, I look Gouda!”
