US Conservatives Courting the Fat Vote?

via Stephen Budiansky’s Liberal Curmudgeon Blog, he created the chart above, which illustrates Republican voting versus obesity rates in the 50 states, demonstrating the undeniable correlation between these two variables.

He writes:

Now, admittedly, simple petulance might explain the attacks on Michelle Obama’s campaign for healthier diets that have been heard of late in certain quarters. Sarah Palin in her best smart-ass girl in the back of the class manner sarcastically announced that “Michelle Obama said we should not have dessert” as she (Palin) demonstrated her (Palin’s) combined woodcraft and culinary skills by preparing s’mores on her “reality” TV show a few weeks ago.

Rush Limbaugh arguably did her one better earlier in the season, however, declaring that diet and exercise “are irrelevant”; a conclusion he derived by applying a rigorous logical chain of reasoning (“I know liberals, and I know liberals lie, and if Michelle Obama’s gonna be out there ripping into ‘food desserts’ and saying, ‘This is why people are fat,’ I know it’s not true”). Limbaugh further backed his assertion by noting that “a nutrition professor” lost 27 pounds by eating Twinkies.

Now, here’s what I do not understand: these are the same people also leading the dissemination of many of the strongest fatphobic myths. There seems to be a correlation between Anti Health Care reform and fatphobia. This correlation is, maybe just the result of my subjective observations and might not be such, but if I recall correctly, during the reform debates, one of the loudest points was about “not having to pay for the health problems of morbidly obese people”.

So, what gives? Fatties are good for demagogic appeals for votes but not good enough for universal healthcare and other related benefits? Are they at the forefront of the fatpocalypse or are they citizens worthy of political representation? It seems some conservatives think they can have it both ways.

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