Rep. Steve King Mocks Idea That Obesity Affects National Security

First Lady Michelle Obama has made fighting childhood obesity her top priority.  Earlier this year, Mrs. Obama helped launch "Let's Move," a nationwide program to encourage healthier living.  Last month, the first lady happily announced that a coalition of America's largest food manufacturers had pledged to slash 1.5 trillion calories by 2015.

Naturally, ultraconservative Rep. Steve King (R-IA) views such efforts to promote wellness as evidence of big government run amok.  In a speech on the House floor last night, King complained that "they want to control diets." Citing reports that a significant number of potential military recruits are too overweight to join, King dismissed the problem. "They're still good shells of physical specimens, they just need to be cracked into shape," he said. "That doesn't mean we have a national security problem because too many kids are fat."

KING:  They wanted to tax the non-diet pop, they want to manage behavior, they want to control diets.  They're involved in an effort to take 1.5 trillion calories out of the diets of kids because a third of our youth are obese.  And, uh, Secretary Gates I believe has spoken about this — our Secretary of Defense — there's a higher percentage of young people that don't qualify to go into the military because they've got too much blubber around their belt, and so they can't qualify.  I'd say this then — if they're healthy otherwise, bring 'em in.  If they meet all other standards but they're a little too fat, bring them in to basic training.  Just keep them there a while longer.  By the time you run them around the field in combat boots a few more times and put 'em on a diet and exercise plan, you'll get 'em where they want to be.  They're still good shells of physical specimens.  They just need to be cracked into shape.  That doesn't mean we have a national security problem because too many kids are fat.  I think we do have a problem, though — a nanny security problem if our federal government is going to try to control the diets of our kids in this country. 

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Military experts, however, recognize the danger of increasing obesity.  With the armed forces already stretched thin in a time of war, the military's ability to recruit healthy, able-bodied troops is crucial.  An organization of retired military leaders called Mission: Readiness released a report in April titled "Too Fat To Fight" as part of their drive to restrict junk food in schools.  The report warns that "at least 9 million 17- to 24-year-olds are too fat to serve in the military.  That is 27 percent of all young adults."

Meanwhile, a recent Pentagon study found that the number of overweight and obese troops has doubled since 2002.  "Overweight/obesity is a significant military medical concern because it is associated with decreased military operational effectiveness," the study noted.