SAN NARCISO, Calif. (Bennington Vale Evening Transcript) -- Obesity in the United States is considered by many health experts to have reached epidemic proportions. Immediately after President Obama took office, First Lady Michelle Obama launched an aggressive campaign to promote exercise, nutrition and healthy habits for young children. As of today, 10,000 child care centers across the nation have adopted Mrs. Obama’s program. Her progress, according to federal health authorities, has also inspired parents to buy healthier, lower-calorie foods for their children. The success of these efforts is historic and undeniable -- the CDC reported last week an unprecedented 43-percent drop in obesity rates among two- to five-year-old children. But Republican lawmakers warn that this fitness agenda is a dangerous aspect of Mr. Obama’s socialist healthcare reform, intended to cripple the nation’s thriving health insurance market and destroy the economy.

SAN NARCISO, Calif. (Bennington Vale Evening Transcript) -- On Thursday, after a day of silence and strategizing in the wake of revelations that top aides in his administration orchestrated the politically motivated sabotage of the George Washington Bridge in September, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie appeared before the press to issue a brief public apology followed by two hours of self-indulgent, self-pitying and, at times, passive-aggressive assurances that he was "a very sad person today." Emails published by the Bergen Record on Wednesday presented indisputable evidence that Christie's top staffers and allies plotted to create four days of lane closures on the bustling connector between New Jersey and New York. Christie fired those responsible and denied any involvement in the incident, but his hefty smorgasbord of inconsistent and dubious statements served to further implicate him as another big fat liar in the scandal, particularly when he told reporters he first heard of the emails while he was "working out."

SAN NARCISO, Calif. (Bennington Vale Evening Transcript) -- Obesity rates have more than doubled in U.S. adults and children since the 1970s, according to data from the National Center for Health Statistics. And while recent estimates suggest the overall figures have plateaued or even declined, Americans are still too fat; two-thirds of U.S. adults are considered overweight or obese by established health standards, having a body mass index of 25 or higher. But a bold majority of House Republicans sought to end this disturbing trend Friday by proposing radical reforms to dietary subsidies and health care. In the process, the budgetary proposal would simultaneously prevent a partial government shutdown, which neither party purports to want. "We're literally killing all the birds with one stone," Speaker John Boehner announced with pride.

SAN NARCISO, Calif. (Bennington Vale Evening Transcript) -- The International House of Pancakes (IHOP) is offering a free stack of flapjacks Wednesday to patrons across the country as part of its National Pancake Day celebration. Although the food is free, the restaurant implores customers to leave a donation for Children's Miracle Networks. According to IHOP's website, monies raised for Children's Miracle Networks support the hospital's mission to save and improve the lives of children. The iconic restaurant hopes to achieve this goal by giving away stacks of sugary, fatty cakes drowning in butter and gallons of gooey, sweet syrup. Despite the annual goodwill gesture, police in San Narciso call the event a logistical nightmare that requires an increased presence for crowd control. Last year, an influx of hungry homeless children flocked to the restaurant, disrupting IHOP's mission of helping the nation's impoverished and ailing youth.

SAN NARCISO, Calif. (Bennington Vale Evening Transcript) -- The International House of Pancakes (IHOP) is offering a free stack of flapjacks Tuesday to patrons across the country as part of its National Pancake Day celebrations. Although the food is free, the restaurant urges customers to leave a donation for the charities it supports with the fundraising event. The primary recipient this year is Children's Miracle Networks. According to IHOP's website, monies raised for Children's Miracle Networks support the hospital's mission to save and improve the lives of children. "This is a first world country with third world health problems," said Ivanna Niet, an IHOP spokesperson. "Our program helps Children's Miracle Network treat the unacceptably high number of sick children. Promoting a healthy life for these kids is our number one priority." The iconic restaurant hopes to achieve this goal by giving away stacks of sugary, fatty cakes drowning in butter and gallons of gooey, sweet syrup. "When you consider that this breakfast counts for 25 to 50 percent of your day's caloric allowance, that's a lot of food for free," Niet added.

TRENTON, N.J. (Bennington Vale Evening Transcript) -- Much has been made in the news about the current batch of 2012 Republican candidates, all squaring off against one another, gaining and losing ground, hating gays and immigrants, loving God and Reagan, and leaving America’s uninsured to die on the streets, a campaign promise that has met with thunderclaps of eerie applause. Conservatism is all the rage, and being able swing farther to the right than one’s opponents -- with a greater level of rage -- is a tactic famously endorsed by Richard Nixon himself. Yet even with his conservative credentials under close scrutiny, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has received a groundswell of support from like-minded conservatives who have urged him to enter the race. But Christie seems reluctant. Asked whether he will run, Gov. Christie offered an interesting response. Citing the example of Ronald Reagan, he stated: “I know, without ever having met President Reagan, that he must have felt deeply in his heart that he was called to that moment, to lead our country. But what I feel in my heart right now is primarily suffocating plaque and too much cholesterol. They want me to run the country? I can’t even run a lap around my sofa. So, as with Reagan, my decision depends on God.” What Christie can run, his nervous challengers say, is his “big, fat mouth. And that’s important at this stage in the game.”

Though Christie’s weight has been mentioned countless times in the media, political strategists say it will become a legitimate issue for Christie should he enter the fray. “Even worse,” one aide said, “it might bring focus back on the need for health care. That’s a Republican deal killer.”