US KETCHUP DELIVERS MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE: US Republicans can now use conservative-friendly tomato sauce with their freedom fries (thanks, Adam!)
This impresses me as nothing if not monumentally silly, but hey, this is America- where you are free to make a buck off just about anything. Of course, every dollar the investors are sinking into the company is a dollar that won't be in George W. Bush's war chest.
"You don't support Democrats. Why should your ketchup?" is the slogan for W Ketchup, which promises a totally US-made product.
Manufacturers insist the W stands for Washington, as in George Washington, and not US President George W Bush's middle initial.
W Ketchup has been set up by a group of Republican voters, who say they don't want to contribute to Democratic presidential rival John Kerry's coffers by buying Heinz brand tomato sauce, or ketchup as it is known in the US....
John Kerry is married to Theresa Heinz Kerry, an heir to the Heinz fortune, and his opponents claim her wealth is bankrolling his campaign.
"Choose Heinz and you're supporting Teresa and her husband’s Gulfstream Jet, and liberal causes such as Kerry for President," says website wketchup.com.
However a spokesman for the Heinz corporation point out that Mrs Heinz Kerry holds less than four percent of the company's stock, and neither she nor her husband play an active role in its affairs.
The company says Heinz's Political Action Committee has made equal donations to both parties' candidates.
Of course, Americans are free to make a political statement in whatever way we choose. If these folks can make a few bucks as a novelty act, so be it. It would be nice if they were at least properly informed regarding the minimal involvement that Mrs. Kerry has in Heinz, but then so much of modern Conservatism seems to be about knee-jerk visceral reactions, facts be damned.
While W Ketchup is not likely to become a source of contention at the upcoming presidential election, if polls predict correctly, Republicans may find themselves pouring the ketchup over humble pie.
A Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll released two weeks ago showed George W Bush's approval rating of only 45 percent. Historically, no incumbent president with an overall approval rating of less than 51 percent has bee re-elected in the past five decades.
Say goodbye, George...and here's a bottle of ketchup for you....
