Before he launched his presidential campaign, Jeb Bush released his emails from his eight years as governor. Now he’s released a 700‐page book of selected emails. According to Amazon’s search function, I’m not in the book. But I did have a brief exchange with Governor Bush in 2003. As a libertarian, I wasn’t convinced by his argument. But I was impressed that the governor personally answered an email that I didn’t even send to him but rather to a member of his press staff. Governor Bush announced the creation of the Governor’s Task Force on the Obesity Epidemic, with such goals as:
- Recommend ways to promote the recognition of overweight and obesity as a major public health problem in Florida that also has serious implications for Florida’s economic prosperity;
- Review data and other research to determine the number of Florida’s children who are overweight or at risk of becoming overweight;
- Identify the contributing factors to the increasing burden of overweight and obesity in Florida;
- Recommend ways to help Floridians balance healthy eating with regular physical activity to achieve and maintain a healthy or healthier body weight;
- Identify and research evidenced‐based strategies to promote lifelong physical activity and lifelong healthful nutrition, and to assist those who are already overweight or obese to maintain healthy lifestyles;
- Identify effective and culturally appropriate interventions to prevent and treat overweight and obesity;
When the announcement of this task force reached my inbox, courtesy of the governor’s office press list, I had this exchange (read from the bottom):
From: Jeb Bush [mailto:jeb@jeb.org]
Sent: Thursday, October 16, 2003 8:05 PM
To: David Boaz
Cc: jill.bratina@myflorida.com
Subject: FW: Executive Order Number 03–196
David, the reason for this is that obesity creates huge costs to government. If you believe in limited government, you should support initiatives that reduce it. I know you believe that it is not the role of government to deal with these demands, which I respect, but until you win the day, we need to respond to the challenge.
Jeb
—–Original Message—–
From: David Boaz [mailto:dboaz@cato.org]
Sent: Wednesday, October 15, 2003 10:30 AM
To: DiPietre, Jacob
Subject: RE: Executive Order Number 03–196
Why is what I eat any of the government’s business? This is the very definition of big government.
—–Original Message—–
From: DiPietre, Jacob [mailto:Jacob.DiPietre@MyFlorida.com]
Sent: Wednesday, October 15, 2003 10:21 AM
To: ALL OF EOG, OPB & SDD
Subject: Executive Order Number 03–196
Memorandum
DATE: October 15, 2003
TO: Capital Press Corps
FROM: Jill Bratina, Governor’s Communications Director
RE: Executive Order Number 03–196
Please find attached an Executive Order creating the Governor’s Task Force on the Obesity Epidemic.
As I said, I wasn’t persuaded. I’ve written that obesity is not in fact a public health problem. It may be a widespread health problem, but you can’t catch obesity from doorknobs or molecules in the air. And the idea that our personal choices impose costs on government, through semi‐socialized medicine and similar programs, has no good stopping point. If obesity is the government’s business, then so are smoking, salt intake, motorcycle riding, insufficient sleep, cooking all the nutrients out of vegetables, and an endless stream of potentially sub‐optimal decisions. (I was going to include drinking whole milk, but … well, you know.)
I’m glad to note that last month Jeb Bush said that a federally developed anti‐obesity video game, “Mommio,” was a waste of “scarce resources.” Maybe he’s coming around.
