bad ideas

Trump Campaign Takes Brief, Bold Stance Against Food Safety

It’s the Donald vs. the “FDA food police.” Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images

Donald Trump, who is made of McDonald’s, knows exactly how to improve food safety: Get rid of all the regulations. In a statement released today, the presidential candidate’s campaign called for eliminating, among other things, the “FDA food police.” The call is firmly in line with Trump’s desire, stated in his economic-policy plan, to immediately halt new food-safety regulations and thoroughly review previous ones to see if any (all?) should be scrapped. Among others, the campaign called for an end to the EPA’s Clean Power Plan, “Waters of the United States” rule, and new ground-level ozone standard. The campaign also said it would get rid of “food police” rules governing things like “farm and food production hygiene” as well as “inspection overkill.”

Trump appears to want to return to a paradise where people were not oppressed by regulations aimed at keeping them safe from potentially deadly pathogens. The thing is that ending food-safety regulations makes no sense because they are working. In any case, Trump’s hot take on food safety flamed out fast as the fact sheet was removed from his campaign website not long after being posted.

Trump Takes Brief, Bold Stance Against Food Safety