McCain Sets the Table for NRA
Republican candidate visits restaurant show as Dems campaign
By Stephanie Corbin -- Tradeshow Week, 6/2/2008
The Natl. Restaurant Assn. Restaurant Hotel-Motel Show typically draws high-profile names – and a lot of political leaders – as speakers.
This year's May 17-20 edition at Chicago's McCormick Place was no different, with presumptive Republican presidential nominee U.S. Sen. John McCain speaking May 19, though he wasn't even the keynote – that was Jim Skinner, vice chairman and CEO of McDonald's.
“Sen. McCain, Sen. (Hillary) Clinton and Sen. (Barack) Obama were all invited to speak,” said Mike Donohue, vice president of media relations for the Natl. Restaurant Assn. Because of the primary elections in Kentucky and Oregon the following day, Clinton and Obama were campaigning and declined the invitations, he added.
“Since it was a presidential year, (the association) thought to invite all the presidential candidates,” Donohue added. “We were hopeful that they all would (speak).”
He said the national and state restaurant associations are involved in public policy, and the show is the perfect forum for policy makers to address issues affecting the industry. In 2006, President George W. Bush spoke at the show.
Last year's celebrity politican was former U.S. Sen. and actor Fred Thompson, who at the time was attracting considerable attention, but still had not announced that he would run for the Republican presidential nomination. He delivered a keynote speech entitled, “Traveling in Strange Circles – From Watergate to Hollywood to the United States Senate to Law & Order.”
According to a copy of remarks from his NRA speech, much of McCain's focus was on the economy, taxes and farm policy, all pertinent issues to those owners, operators and managers of restaurants; food equipment manufacturers; food service workers; food purchasing agents; and others in the food service and hospitality industries in attendance at the show.
McCain started his speech by cracking a joke: “Considering that both of my prospective opponents call this city their hometown, I've received a very warm welcome here. Many Democratic voters in Illinois are especially proud of their junior senator. They believe more than ever that Barack Obama was the right choice for the Senate in 2004. I couldn't agree more, and I promise to do everything in my power to help him finish his first term in the United States Senate.”
It wasn't long though before McCain brought up an issue of great interest to the NRA show attendees: food prices.
“Here we are at a time when food prices are at historic highs, and farm income is up by 56 percent in just the past two years,” he said.
Campaign spokespeople for McCain, Clinton and Obama did not return calls for comment.
