Knew There Would Be Backlash: Republican Pizza Shop Owner Threatened For Bear-Hugging President Obama

Some Republicans are angry with Scott Van Duzer. The Florida pizza shop owner has a fondness for President Obama and greeted the commander in chief with a bear-bug when he stopped by his shop Sunday (Sept. 9). The harmless show of affection, which he cleared beforehand with the Secret Service, has been seen as a bad move by some members of the party to which he belongs.

“People are saying a lot of bad things and boycotting my restaurant,” Van Duzer revealed. “There's no middle line anymore, and that's exactly what's wrong with our country right now.”

While Van Duzer is a Republican, he voted for Obama in 2008, and plans to do so again in the forthcoming election. After footage of his meeting with the president hit the news circuit, angry conservatives took to Yelp to post negative reviews about his Big Apple Pizza restaurant, some of which have been removed:

“The pizza is fine, but I'll never go there again because there are too many other great pizza places that don't treat the POTUS like he's some long-lost frat buddy. That was disrespectful and the insertion of suck-up politics made me lose my appetite for Big Apple Pizza.”

Even though Van Duzer's love for the president may not be partisan-based, on commenter didn't see things that way:

“All Mr. Bear Hug needed to do was to keep is mouth shut about being a pretend Republican. HE decided to make it political when he went on record. But no, he needed to make a point that big hulking Republican white men really dig Obama. Maybe some clever Dem will come up with Van Duzer Day.”

Another customer felt that they had no choice but to seek vengeance against the establishment:

“Well.. I'd eat there but after seeing the owner grab our leftist President I felt compelled to disrespect his establishment as much as the President disrespects our constitution. Shame on you Scott Van Duzer for thumbing your nose at all the small business owners this President has disrespected for the last four years. I guess you DIDN'T BUILD IT!

So the owner loves the pr stunt and is now whining about losing some customers? Sounds too stupid to be running a business in the first place… Oh, and do the only take food stamps?

Van Duzer was awarded with the Obama meeting thanks to his charity efforts to get blood donations for people in need. He told CNN that he got “caught up in the moment “ when he grabbed the president, picking him up like a child. “As soon as I saw him, he came right at me, shook my hand. I was so excited, I picked him up.”