Giuliani off the mark on grocery costs

[Newsjock]

Source: Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani hasn't done a lot of grocery shopping lately - at least based on his answers about the cost of milk and bread.

... But when asked about more mundane matters - like the price of some basic staples - Giuliani had trouble with a reporter's question.

"A gallon of milk is probably about a $1.50, a loaf of bread about a $1.25, $1.30," he said.

... Giuliani was closer to the mark on the price of a gallon of gasoline.

"Gas, I think, is $2.89," he said


Read more: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1131AP_Giuliani_Groceries.html

[LisaM]

1. Good Lord

I don't drink milk, but I know that a quart of half and half can be close to $3.00, and I know that bread is averaging more than $3.00 a loaf, too.

[MLFerrell]

3. What the heck kind of fancy bread YOU been eatin'?

:)

Bread here in Morgantown, WV is $1.00 a loaf.

[LisaM]

6. Mostly Orowheat (goes by different names around the country)

and other local varieties that are whole grain. It's way overpriced. Sometimes we get it at the outlet bakery for closer to a dollar a loaf, but it gets stale more quickly. Regular store brand bread, which I rarely eat, is still at something like $1.29.

[MLFerrell]

7. Plain-old store brand white bread for me.

Nothing better for grilled cheese, in my humble opinion.

[cosmicdot]

23. does it have corn syrup as an ingredient?

just wondering ... I have been trying buy bread and other products without it ... if you're wondering why I ask, a scroogle http://www.scroogle.org/cgi-bin/scraper.htm of 'dangers of corn syrup' or 'high fructose corn syrup' should provide some links

I think Archer-Daniels Midland is a key supplier and profiteer of corn syrup.

Check the labels on other things, too ... it's not in everything, but sometimes it seems like it.


here's just one of many links
http://www.femhealth.com/DangersofHFCS.html

[NYC]

28. Many brands of bread contain corn syrup.

Always read the labels carefully.

[LisaM]

29. It is really hard to get bread without high-fructose corn syrup

which pisses me off. I called the company that makes Orowheat and complained (it was an answering machine). I think I'll call again!

[NYC]

34. Even Orowheat contains high fructose corn syrup?

There's no need for corn syrup in bread. Sometimes, I'm lucky, and I find bread made in NYC. It has all natural ingredients, a very short list. I don't care that it doesn't last as long. Bread freezes nicely, and defrosts almost instantly.

Keep reading ingredients. It's self defense.

[w4rma]

8. Giuliani lives and shops (or is shopped for) in New York.

Prices there are much higher than the cheapest groceries in West Virginia supermarkets.

[valerief]

10. I pay 3.99 for a loaf of organic oatnut bread. nt

[whoneedstickets]

11. I nearly need financing

to buy that fancy bread at the co-op, but it's just so good!

[valerief]

12. Yeah, it tastes like "real" bread, not the Nerfball stuff with no fiber. nt

[AlCzervik]

17. about the same here in norcal for bread, orowheat and $3.79 for a gallon of milk.

[BearSquirrel2]

27. Next time he should ...

Next time Giuliani should put on a dress and proclaim "Let them eat cake!!!"

[no_hypocrisy]

2. Gasoline is a gimme. He has to see it when he looks out of the limo

en route to his next rubber chicken dinner/speech.

[Faux pas]

4. He's so connected to the common man...And the real world.

:sarcasm:

[juno jones]

5. Scary

I shop for my family and have been worried about prices creeping up...but $1.50 for a gallon of milk! Did he last shop for himself when Reagan was president or what?

[JackCo]

9. That is part of the problem.

Most of the politicians are so out of touch with the realities that an average family deals with. When if ever was the last time they had to budget for living expenses. I would love for them to try living as the average family does for a minimum of 3 months. Maybe then reforms like a living wage and health care would finally be addressed.

Here the "good" milk is $5.30/gal for 2% and the store brand is $3.75. Bread is around $2.75 and store brand is $1.90. Just to buy what is considered the basics is becoming harder for alot of people.

[LiberalFighter]

18. Wow!! I pay usually $1.77 to $2.00 for whole gallon when on sale

otherwise would cost $2.50 to $3.50

Bread is usually marked down to $1.59 otherwise when not on sale it is about $2.00

[youngdem]

13. HEB in Austin has what they call white or wheat bread at $.59 and $.69 per loaf

or at least did 12 months ago.

[youngdem]

14. The last time milk cost $1.50 a gallon was in late 1973 or early 1974(really)

http://www.1970sflashback.com/1974/Economy.asp


It is hard to believe this guy hasn't seen the inside of a grocery store in 33+ years.

[fidgeting wildly]

15. Why should he trouble his beautiful mind with the price of milk?

I lived in Manhattan until Feb. of this year and used to pay $4.19 for a gallon of store brand milk. Not the fancy stuff. I live in Queens now and I can get it for $2.89 here. Still much higher than his $1.50.

[AlCzervik]

16. Paging George Bush Sr.

[LisaM]

19. Maybe they should try a few other prices on him

How about spices? Some small containers of spices cost $8.00 or $9.00. Raisins cost a fortune. Juice is sky high.

[Disturbed]

20. Rudy G. is a fraud.

This man is merely a huckster. When real investigations into his actions are forthcoming it will be obvious that he shouldn't have even been elected Mayor of NY, much less be considered to be the Pres. of the USA.

[tritsofme]

21. I would have no idea either, and probably would have guessed similarly

My wife does all of our grocery shopping.

Reporters love these types of "gotcha" questions, I doubt any of our major presidential candidates shop for their own groceries.

[Journeyman]

22. Well, I haven't a clue what bread or milk cost. . .

and I'd be hard pressed to tell you the price of gasoline if people around me didn't talk so much about it. But then, I work out of the home and rarely drive, hardly ever shop, and when I do I never pay attention to cost (but then, that's me, and I'm not running for elective office).

I'm sure Giuliani hasn't been shopping for decades. And why should he? He has a cook and a housekeeper to do those things. You'd think, though, as a candidate for President, these sort of things would be part of his early briefing for the office, especially in light of the grief Bush Sr. endured when it became known he'd never seen a scanner. But I'm certainly not going to base my opinion of Giuliani (or even of Bush Sr.) on their shopping habits. There's plenty of issues of substance to hold them to account for, issues which will resonate with a wide spectrum of the people.

[LisaM]

32. Not only part of his briefing, but he should know on PRINCIPLE

This lack of knowledge probably contributes to the whole minimum wage debate - sure, the minimum wage sounds like plenty if you think milk costs $1.50 a gallon, but if you want to represent this entire nation, you need to be aware of what the average person needs to live.

[Up2Late]

24. $1.50 for a Gallon of Milk? Damn, he would suck on "The Price is Right!"

SNL should do a Politician version of "The Price is Right," similar to the Jeopardy parody they do. That would be hilarious if it wasn't so sad.

Here in the Atlanta Metro, a Gallon of Skim Milk is $3.37 for the Kroger Store brand and a loaf of the Natural Food Breads from the Masada Bakery are $2.69, $2.79 or $3.19, depending on which version you get.

I found Gas as low as $2.69 this week, but at most places it's at least $2.89.

[jody]

25. This happened in Montgomery Alabama, capital of a state now 49% Dem and 46% Repug. See link below.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=137x4037

[northzax]

26. so?

really, who cares? I certainly don't know what a gallon of milk costs (but then I am unamerican in that I don't drink milk) I also have no idea how much the average loaf of bread costs, what, like two bucks, three bucks? it really doesn't matter, when I need bread, a fifty cent difference doesn't matter much. Excuse me if I am somehow elitist, but you throw a loaf of bread into the grocery cart. Who buys just a loaf of bread? I look at the total from my day's shopping, not the individual items. (of course, I can afford to, I know that, but then so can Guiliani, why does it matter if he knows this? really?)

[Orsino]

30. It's symptomatic of not giving a damn about us.

How the hell is he supposed to sign or veto a minimum wage bill without knowing what the proposed minimum wage will buy?

Mind you, I think Rudy is just the first candidate to be caught with this gotcha. I doubt that the others would fare much better--without a bit of study first.

Even better questions, though, might have been: how many gallons of milk does an average family use per week? How many families have to survive on less than $20k/yr? I'm guessing that Rudy, as with most of his competition for the presidency, would do better on a quiz concerning stock prices or private school tuition.

They are not of us.

[northzax]

35. not of you, perhaps

does the fact that I don't know the price of a gallon of milk mean I am not a 'real american'? please. you think John Edwards knows the price of a gallon of milk? only if he has studied. You think Al Gore does? When's the last time you figure John Edwards wandered down to the Piggly Wiggly to pick up a gallon of milk and some eggs?

[Orsino]

37. Well, if you're not a real American, then neither am I.

I do about half of the shopping in the household, and I have no idea of the price of a gallon of milk. I buy it in half-gallons, but I don't look at that price, either.

But I wasn't questioning anyone's nationality. I just think that the great divide is symptomatic of modern American politics. Only rich people get to run seriously for national office, by and large, and our national officeholders are therefore similarly ignorant of the cost of living. If you check my post again, I think you'll see that I wasn't singling out Rudy--or exempting our Dems.

You'd think, though, that our candidates would at least be prepped for this obvious question that comes up every damned election cycle.

[july302001]

42. It's their JOB

Politicians are public servants who are hired to represent us. It's not the other way around.

This question about the price of a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk is asked by reporters every election. I remember the question years ago. It's almost always even the same grocery items!

Politicians should come close to a correct, down-to-earth answer, such as "The whole wheat bread I feed my family costs $3.19 and a gallon of skim milk is $3.29 at my local Kroger's." This way, they get in a subtle plug for health eating (whole wheat vs. white) along with an accurate price.

It's a politician's job to know how the cost of living is impacting his/her constituents, especially those on fixed incomes or who work for low wages.

[brentspeak]

31. "Ok, so I have no idea what's going on out there in the real world. But vote for me anyway."

[Naipes]

33. To Be Fair...

None of these Presidential politicians truly "represent" the common man and I mean ALL Presidential politicians, not just the Republicans. None of them shop for themselves, cook for themselves, clean for themselves or drive for themselves. They all have "people" for that. Asking them a question about the price of groceries is like asking Joe Bluecollar about the price of caviar. It's not a fair question.

Look at it this way, Obama & Hillary each generated approximately 24 MILLION Dollars in less than half a year! Shit, I'm trying to save for retirement over the span of my entire life and I have no where near 1 million dollars, let alone 24. Don't get me wrong, I'm no fan of Republicans, but do people really think that people who can get their hands on that much money in such a relatively short span of time actually "represent" the common man? Get real.

[Orsino]

38. "Not a fair question"?

Of course it's fair (especially for a candidate who has dared to utter the phrase "family values"). If a rich man wants to represent the interests of working Americans, he ought to do his homework. If he can't be bothered to do so during the campaign, well, we know what to expect when he takes office.

"Get real"? That's a fine admonishment for anyone who claims to represent a majority of the electorate.

[Naipes]

39. Apparently, you missed my point.

A rich man does not "represent" the interests of working Americans.

[Orsino]

41. Whether or not the rich man represents us...

..and whether or not he can represent us, it is always fair for us to question him while he holds public office. That he probably hasn't studied the issue doesn't excuse him from this responsibility.

[area51]

36. once again, republinazis show their true colors

Republinazis are out of touch with decent Americans.

[noonwitch]

40. Groceries are cheaper where I shop-Meijer

As a single person, I buy a half gallon of milk, which does cost about $1.50. The whole wheat bread from the bakery is $2.99-I could find cheaper bread, I just like that kind best.

I like Rudy-I'm not going to vote for him (unless the dems do something really stupid and nominate Biden, but that's not likely), but I don't think this indicates he's clueless. Very few married men do the grocery shopping.

Anyways, where I've noticed the largest price increases is in the fresh produce section. It might be due to seasonal costs or due to the price of gasoline, but prices for things like tomatos and green peppers have doubled in the last couple of years.