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Ryan at a soup kitchen in Youngstown, Ohio, on Oct. 13, 2012 (Mary Altaffer/AP)
When Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan rinsed a few dishes in the back of a soup kitchen in Youngstown, Ohio, he couldn't have known the photo op would still be a story almost a week later. It is, but not for anything positive.
According to The Huffington Post, the Mahoning County St. Vincent De Paul Society is losing donors as a result of the photo. "It appears to be a substantial amount," charity president Brian Antal told the Post. "You can rest assured there has been a substantial backlash." Antal declined to mention specific numbers, citing privacy concerns.
For those who haven't been following, er, soup kitchen-gate, here's what happened. Rep. Ryan stopped by on Saturday morning and offered to wash a few dishes. However, according to Antal, the Ryan camp wasn't exactly invited.
"We are apolitical because the majority of our funding is from private donations," Antal told The Washington Post. "It's strictly in our bylaws not to do it. They showed up there, and they did not have permission. They got one of the volunteers to open up the doors." Antal also said that "If this was the Democrats, I'd have the same exact problem."
A spokesperson for Ryan told the Washington Post that a staff member reached out to the charity before stopping by and was told that "it would be fine for the congressman to stop by."
