It’s no wonder that a guy who makes millions on shady law firm consultations and high-flying speaking engagements is a little out of touch with the common man. Asked by a reporter in Alabama about the prices of a gallon of milk and a loaf of bread, Rudy Giuliani answered:
“A gallon of milk is probably about a $1.50, a loaf of bread about a $1.25, $1.30.”
Reality?
A check of the Web site for D’Agostino supermarket on Manhattan’s Upper East Side showed a gallon of milk priced at $4.19 and a loaf of white bread at $2.99 to $3.39. In Montgomery, Ala., a gallon of milk goes for about $3.39 and bread is about $2.
Two observations: (1) This is a classic “gotcha!” question that reporters love, and every presidential candidate should be given a commodities rundown with their morning briefing (“Mrs. Clinton, bags of potatoes are down 30 cents, closing yesterday at $3.49.”). You have to believe Mitt Romney’s and John Edwards’ people are scrambling to get this sort of information to their candidates this very second, because reporters are probably salivating about the idea of catching a second candidate looking silly today.
And (2) I’m not sure I would know the exact price of those things. In my mind, living in New York, the answer is “Too much.” I remember seeing a gallon of orange juice at almost $10, and I stopped caring completely. “Just take all my money,” I say to the checkout counter lady. “I don’t care how much anything costs anymore. You win.”
Of course, this all recalls a classic George Bush Sr. moment:
His difficulty with grocery items recalled another Republican’s supermarket run-in. In 1992, President George H.W. Bush expressed amazement at a high-tech supermarket scanner, prompting critics to argue that he was out of touch with average Americans. The White House cried foul, pointing out that during a grocers’ convention Bush had been impressed by a special scanner that could read torn labels.
Via Kos.
