Former Pa. governor: A hot dog is a sandwich

HARRISBURG, Pa., July 30 (UPI) -- Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell has become the latest high-profile personality to weigh in on the debate over whether a hot dog qualifies as a sandwich.

Rendell was asked by an interviewer to weigh in on the subject, which has recently become a topic of heated Internet debate, and he came out in favor of giving sandwich status to hot dogs.

"It's got bread," Rendell told WPHT-AM. "Would you put a hoagie in the sandwich category? What I would think is the hot dog, the cheese steak, the hoagie, they're in the elite sandwich category...If you eat a hot dog without the bun, it's not a sandwich, obviously. But if you use the bun, I think that it's just a different type of sandwich, but it's still a sandwich. The bread to me would be the key."

Rendell's sentiments echoed those of comedian Hannibal Buress.

"A hot dog is a sandwich if you really think about it. It's bread, it's meat, it's toppings. It's just a different approach to the sandwich. It's not a sandwich like, classically, but it's a sandwich in spirit and it has all of the things a sandwich would have," Buress told Esquire.

Sports stars from the NFL and Major League Baseball have also weighed in on the question.

The Chicago Cubs' official Twitter account took a firm stance against labeling hot dogs as sandwiches.

"The hot dog is the meat. The bun is an accessory," the tweet read.