Kasich's Pizza-Gate In NY: He Used A Fork!
By David Wright
PHILADELPHIA (CNN) -- This is a gaffe that could really come back to bite him.
With weeks to go before the important New York primary on April 19th, Ohio Gov. John Kasich came to the state looking for votes and a little something to eat.
Good move: He had pizza. Bad move: He ate it with a fork.
The unforgivable food faux pas -- liable to send New Yorkers into a tizzy -- occurred at Gino's Pizzeria in Howard Beach, Queens, during a campaign stop Wednesday night. In video of the incident, Kasich can be seen eagerly digging into what looks like a pepperoni pizza -- utensil first.
Kasich was confronted with the slip-up during an interview with Robin Roberts on ABC's "Good Morning America" on Thursday morning, and tried to defend himself.
"Look, Robin, look, look, the pizza came scalding hot, OK?" Kasich pizza-splained. "And so I used a little fork. You know what, my wife, who is on spring break with my daughters, she said, 'I'm proud of you. You finally learned how to use a utensil properly.' But I mean -- not only did I eat the pizza, I had the hot sausage. It was fantastic."
That prompted Roberts to strike at the heart of the issue: "New Yorkers eat their pizza a certain way, just saying. Not just New Yorkers, but around the world."
In fairness to Kasich, he proceeded to drop the offending fork after the first bite and gobbled up the rest of the slice with his hands.
Kasich is hardly the first politician to fall into the pizza trap.
Current New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio set off a firestorm in January of 2014 when he was caught on camera using a fork -- and a knife! -- to take down a slice.
And a little-known, aspiring pol from New York named Donald Trump became the center of controversy when "The Daily Show" ripped into him after he, too, was seen eating pizza with a utensil at a stop with Sarah Palin in 2011.
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