Hot dogs on the hill
The North American Meat Institute recently held its Annual Hot Dog Day Lunch in the Rayburn House Office Building courtyard.
The event is quite the hot ticket for lawmakers, media, congressional staff, meat industry representatives and select aggies in Washington. You must be invited by NAMI to attend and absolutely no interns are allowed. There are typically hordes of folks outside the doors who’ve been turned away, scheming how to get in.
So, what’s so special about it? Did I mention there are unlimited hot dogs, brats, corn dogs, soft drinks and chips? If strategic enough, attendees can fill their stomachs for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
According to NAMI, there were over 3,500 hot dogs given away to over 1,000 people during the course of the lunch. All leftover food was donated to a local food bank.
“The Hot Dog Lunch has been an annual tradition for more than 40 years. This longstanding event celebrates America’s love of hot dogs—a love that crosses party lines,” said NAMI President and CEO Barry Carpenter.
The event is always in July, because it is National Hot Dog Month. About a half-dozen meat companies are on hand doling out multiple varieties of hot dogs and brats. This year’s companies included Tyson Foods Inc., Hormel Foods Corp., Land O’Frost Inc., Boar’s Head Provisions Co. Inc., Smithfield Foods and Dietz & Watson Inc.
There are always a few retired Major League Baseball stars on hand to sign autographs and take photos. This year’s baseball greats included left fielder and MLB Hall of Famer Tim Raines, who played for the Montreal Expos and New York Yankees; shortstop Bert Campaneris, who played for the Kansas City and Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers, California Angels and New York Yankees; and outfielder Lou Piniella, who played for the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals and New York Yankees.
The co-hosts of the 2018 lunch were House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway and Ranking Member Collin Peterson. This year’s sponsors included the American Bakers Association, American Beverage Association, Hormel Foods Corporation, Kraft Heinz, International Bottled Water Association and Snack Food Association.
To mine and others’ surprise, there were no “lettuce ladies” this year.
Come again, you say? The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals typically has several scantily clad women dressed in lettuce bikinis, handing out vegan hot dogs outside of the building.
Of course, not many people actually eat the pathetic excuse for a hot dog. As with everything PETA does, it’s just another way to garner attention with their outrageous and controversial antics.
However, this year, PETA employees were dressed in simple black t-shirts. My hunch is that #MeToo may have had something to do with this change in wardrobe.
PETA’s sister organization, the Humane Society of the United States has been in hot water for sexual harassment allegations. HSUS CEO Wayne Pacelle and Paul Shapiro, another top dog at the anti-animal agriculture organization stepped down over the sexual harassment earlier this year.
Editor’s note: Seymour Klierly writes Washington Whispers for the Journal from inside the Beltway.
