How dare a college make fun of President Obama? Or, more precisely, how dare a Tennessee state university sell breath mints satirizing the president of the United States?
According to an article by Megan Boehnke in the Knoxville News Sentinel:
Breath mints are usually refreshing, but a Knoxville legislator believes a University of Tennessee bookstore’s selling of novelty candies mocking President Barack Obama [“disappoint MINTS,” right] stinks.
UT officials pulled the mints poking fun at Obama from store shelves after state Rep. Joe Armstrong, a Democrat, visited the bookstore and told the director he found the satirical mints offensive.
Armstrong, a Democrat, hastened to add that his actions were appropriate, however, since the University of Tennessee is supported by the state legislature. As Armstrong puts it:
When you operate on state and federal dollars, you ought to be sensitive to those type of politically specific products. If it was a private entity or corporation or store, (that’s different), but this is a state university. We certainly don’t want in any way to put the university in a bad light by having those political (products), particularly aimed at defaming the president.
No, no. Apparently it would be far preferable to make the entire state legislature look ridiculous with this bizarre level of involvement.
It’s unclear if Armstrong is arguing that because Tennessee is a state university its bookstore is actually not allowed to sell products that make fun of federal officials or if his point is merely that he didn’t like the mints and since he is a state legislator the school should watch out.
Either way, this meddling is sort of dumb.
It’s worth pointing out that the bookstore also sold candies ridiculing President Bush during his time in office.
