CHICAGO The National Restaurant Association is trying to ensure that an ally ends up in the White House next year by finding restaurateurs to work within the campaigns of all three major candidates.
“We figure one of the three presidential candidates will win,” Bob Leonard, the IHOP franchisee who heads the association’s Political Action Committee, told the full NRA board on Sunday, drawing a laugh. “When they win, we want friends who were friends [to them] before they won.”
Toward that end, he explained, the NRA is launching a program called “Restaurateurs For,” which aims to find foodservice executives who are willing to work for the election of Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama or John McCain, the senators who have dominated the primaries. “We want a restaurateur on each of the campaign staffs,” said Leonard.
He urged any directors who were willing to serve as a possible bridge between the industry and the candidates to step forward, calling the situation an opportunity for leadership.