Nanny Schwarzenegger

Schwarzenegger Wants School Junk Food Ban

At the bodybuilding event named for him, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Sunday that he wants to ban all sales of junk food in California schools and fill vending machines with fresh fruits, vegetables and milk.

Schwarzenegger's comments came in during a question-and-answer session with fans, when a questioner asked how he plans to combat youth obesity.

"First of all, we in California this year are introducing legislation that would ban all the sale of junk food in the schools," Schwarzenegger said.
Aides said later that the governor supports a bill by Democratic state Sen. Martha Escutia that would ban soft drinks at public schools, and that the administration hopes to develop a more comprehensive legislative package dealing with snack foods.

"I wouldn't say we're going to ban all" junk food, Chief of Staff Pat Clarey. "We just are looking at additional bills that will deal with snack food at high schools ... we're looking for healthy snacks."
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While I applaud Gov. Arnold's concern about youth obesity and I believe schools should offer healthy menus for students, banning "all the sale of junk food in the schools" would be an extreme measure. What's next? A Zero Tolerance policy for bringing Crunchy Cheetos on to school grounds? Immediate suspension for Twinkie possession? Will lockers and backpacks be searched for Skittles?

Obviously, Arnold's Chief of Staff needed to clarify the governor's sweeping statement. I suspect that Clarey spends a good deal of time clarifying.