Soup kitchen visit by Ryan stirs anger

[Wallace108]

Last week, Paul Ryan made a stop at a soup kitchen in Youngstown, Ohio ... about 50 yards from where I work. I was on vacation and out of touch, so I didn't even know he was going to be there. :doh:

I'm not sure if what happened during his visit got any play outside of our area, but here's a couple stories about it. What happened isn't terribly important as far as the election goes, but I thought I'd post it anyway ...



Soup kitchen visit by Ryan stirs anger

By David Skolnick

YOUNGSTOWN

The president of Mahoning County’s St. Vincent de Paul Society is “shocked” and “angry” that Republican vice-presidential nominee Paul Ryan used the soup kitchen for a “publicity stunt.”

Brian J. Antal, who runs the society, said the campaign “ramrodded themselves in there” without getting proper permission for the visit Saturday that followed Ryan’s town-hall meeting at Youngstown State University.

“They said they got permission from the right people, but that would have been me, and I never would have given them permission,” Antal said Monday.

Juanita Sherba, St. Vincent’s Saturday coordinator for the dining hall, said she gave the Ryan campaign approval that day for the visit by the candidate and his family.

Sherba say she now realizes it wasn’t her call to make.

The event “was a photo op,” she said. “It was the phoniest piece of baloney I’ve ever been associated with. In hindsight, I would have never let him in the door.”

http://www.vindy.com/news/2012/oct/16/soup-kitchen-visit-by-ryan-stirs-anger/

And then the backlash ...


Soup kitchen takes financial hit after Ryan photo-op flap

YOUNGSTOWN — The president of Mahoning County’s St. Vincent de Paul Society says the agency has taken a financial hit after his criticism of Republican vice-presidential nominee Paul Ryan’s visit to the soup kitchen made national news.

“The amount of people who called and said they were donors who would stop contributing is substantial,” said Brian J. Antal, who runs the society.

When asked for specifics, Antal said “donations are private,” but of the people who’ve called, “dozens have identified themselves” and are donors.

http://www.vindy.com/news/2012/oct/19/soup-kitchen-takes-financial-hit-after-ryan-photo-/?nw

[Borski]

Thats stupid. To stop donating to the soup kitchen doesn't hurt the candidate, it hurts the people they feed.

[fansince'76]

The president of Mahoning County’s St. Vincent de Paul Society is “shocked” and “angry” that Republican vice-presidential nominee Paul Ryan used the soup kitchen for a “publicity stunt.”

Brian J. Antal, who runs the society, said the campaign “ramrodded themselves in there” without getting proper permission for the visit Saturday that followed Ryan’s town-hall meeting at Youngstown State University.

“They said they got permission from the right people, but that would have been me, and I never would have given them permission,” Antal said Monday.

And now, the rest of the story...


Update: Antal, who describes himself as an independent, has voted in Democratic primaries for the past 17 years.

Charity president unhappy about Paul Ryan soup kitchen ‘photo op’ (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/election-2012/wp/2012/10/15/charity-president-unhappy-about-paul-ryan-soup-kitchen-photo-op/)

Don't know about Ohio, but in Colorado, it's kinda hard to vote in primaries when you're supposedly an "independent" (unaffiliated) - take it from somebody who is actually REGISTERED as one. :coffee:

[GBMelBlount]

It amazes me how many liberals claim to be independent.

Just like the plants in the last debate.

It also amazes me that these people who claim to care would actually stop donating to help others in an effort to bring bad press to Romney.

Typical liberal thinking.

- - - Updated - - -

Liberals to the left of him effbots to the right.....Romney is walking a helluva tight rope.

[Wallace108]

On the surface, I can understand why the soup kitchen president is upset. The kitchen relies on donations and doesn't want to appear to be favoring a particular party or candidate, especially if the candidate is a Republican. Youngstown and Mahoning County are HEAVILY Democratic. I could see Democrat donors getting pissed if he allowed Ryan to do a photo op at the kitchen. I can even understand why he contacted the local paper to get his side of the story out. But where his story turns to crap is that he went beyond the local media and also contacted the Washington Post. What was the point of contacting the Post if not to smear Ryan?


It also amazes me that these people who claim to care would actually stop donating to help others in an effort to bring bad press to Romney.

Actually, it's people who are pissed about the way Ryan was smeared who are stopping their donations. The kitchen won't suffer though, at least in the short-term. Democrats in the area are rallying to make up for the lost donations, which makes me wonder why they weren't donating in the first place if they really care. Long-term, however, the kitchen could face problems unless the donors who support Romney/Ryan come back. They were obviously consistent donors who were doing it because they cared. The Democrats who are donating just to make up for the lost donations are doing so just to make the Republicans looks bad. Once the stink settles, they probably won't continue to donate.

And before anyone gets the idea that those who stopped donating are bad people because they're putting politics above helping the needy, from what I'm hearing, most of them haven't stopped donating ... they're just giving their money to other organizations. St. Vincent isn't the only organization in the area that helps the needy.

[GBMelBlount]

Wallace108;323510]

Actually, it's people who are pissed about the way Ryan was smeared who are stopping their donations.

My bad.


And before anyone gets the idea that those who stopped donating are bad people because they're putting politics above helping the needy, from what I'm hearing, most of them haven't stopped donating ... they're just giving their money to other organizations. St. Vincent isn't the only organization in the area that helps the needy.

Good point.

[X-Terminator]

I'm sure if Obama or Biden wanted a photo-op at the soup kitchen, you wouldn't hear one peep out of this joker. Who the hell is he kidding with his "independent" crap? Get outta here with that.

[The Patriot]

It was awkward. Apparently the soup kitchen was trying to close when Ryan started washing clean dishes. I feel bad for Ryan. He was probably on the campaign trail all day and one of his aids made a mistake.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTZDMVGs16E

[Wallace108]

I'm sure if Obama or Biden wanted a photo-op at the soup kitchen, you wouldn't hear one peep out of this joker. Who the hell is he kidding with his "independent" crap? Get outta here with that.
I'm trying to find out if any Democrats have done photo ops there. So far, I haven't found anything.


It was awkward. Apparently the soup kitchen was trying to close when Ryan started washing clean dishes. I feel bad for Ryan. He was probably on the campaign trail all day and one of his aids made a mistake.

The kitchen president later corrected that and said Ryan didn't wash clean dishes; they were dirty. It was definitely nothing but a photo op. They had intended to get there while food was still being served, but since no one was there, they went to Plan B. They all do photo ops, and the person who was "wrong" here is the lady who agreed to it without contacting the guy in charge. And then the guy in charge was wrong for contacting the Washington Post.

EDIT: Apparently, someone in the Ryan camp called ahead and asked them to leave some dishes unwashed so he'd have something to do there instead of just shaking hands with a few volunteers. That info makes Ryan look bad, but again, that kind of phoney stuff goes on all the time. That's a symptom of what's wrong with our political climate. Symbolism is more important than substance.

[Godfather]

I'm trying to find out if any Democrats have done photo ops there. So far, I haven't found anything.


The kitchen president later corrected that and said Ryan didn't wash clean dishes; they were dirty. It was definitely nothing but a photo op. They had intended to get there while food was still being served, but since no one was there, they went to Plan B. They all do photo ops, and the person who was "wrong" here is the lady who agreed to it without contacting the guy in charge. And then the guy in charge was wrong for contacting the Washington Post.

EDIT: Apparently, someone in the Ryan camp called ahead and asked them to leave some dishes unwashed so he'd have something to do there instead of just shaking hands with a few volunteers. That info makes Ryan look bad, but again, that kind of phoney stuff goes on all the time. That's a symptom of what's wrong with our political climate. Symbolism is more important than substance.

It would have been better to stay away altogether. There's no expectation of going there and working. And the security requirements are a major disruption.

Remember when Bush worked on a Habitat project after Katrina? Falls into that same category. When I got back to my office in October, I found out my company was working on that same house. There was a companywide email about going to volunteer that day, with all the instructions on when to arrive and what the restrictions were.

I wish people realized how disruptive it is when high security politicians show up. Then they wouldn't feel like they needed to go to soup kitchens or homeless shelters or Habitat projects.

[Wallace108]

It would have been better to stay away altogether. There's no expectation of going there and working. And the security requirements are a major disruption.

Remember when Bush worked on a Habitat project after Katrina? Falls into that same category. When I got back to my office in October, I found out my company was working on that same house. There was a companywide email about going to volunteer that day, with all the instructions on when to arrive and what the restrictions were.

I wish people realized how disruptive it is when high security politicians show up. Then they wouldn't feel like they needed to go to soup kitchens or homeless shelters or Habitat projects.
That's a good point, Godfather. While their presence can be good for their own image, it often can be disruptive for the place they're visiting. But we know they all do it, and while I agree it would have been better for Ryan to stay away, it's not fair that he was singled out and smeared in this instance. These kind of photo ops are all too common.