Trump Works Fryer At McDonald’s—And Accuses Harris Without Evidence Of Lying About Summer Job

Topline

Former President Donald Trump visited a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania on Sunday and worked the drive-thru window and frying machine as part of his campaigning blitz across the key battleground state—while also continuing to say, without evidence, that Vice President Kamala Harris lied about working at the franchise in college.

Key Facts

Trump visited a McDonald’s in Feasterville-Trevose in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, northeast of Philadelphia, before a scheduled town hall in Lancaster later in the day.

Trump’s McDonald’s visit was at least in part a response to Harris saying she worked at a McDonald’s while in college—something Trump has clung on to in recent weeks and said is false because Harris has not produced evidence she worked there (though Trump’s team has not produced evidence to the contrary).

When asked why Trump made a point to visit McDonalds in Pennsylvania, his campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told Forbes he did it “because the people of Pennsylvania matter and jobs matter, something Kamala Harris refuses to acknowledge.”

Cheung also told Forbes Harris “is a liar and fraud” and hasn’t given “evidence to back up her claim she worked at McDonald’s because she didn’t actually work there.”

Forbes reached out to Harris’ campaign for comment on Trump’s campaign stop.

Crucial Quote

“I’ve now worked for 15 minutes more than Kamala … she never worked here,” former President Donald Trump said through a McDonald’s drive-thru window on Sunday.

When Did Harris Say She Worked At Mcdonald’s?

Harris appeared to first mention a summer job at the fast-food chain in 2019 during her first presidential campaign. The New York Times reported that, at the time, she joined striking McDonald’s workers on a picket line in Las Vegas in support of a $15 minimum wage. “If we want to talk about those golden arches being a symbol of the best of America, well, the arches are falling short,” Harris reportedly said. Harris has also mentioned working at the company in this year’s general election, including in an interview with MSNBC. Harris’ campaign told the Times she worked at a franchise on Central Avenue in Alameda, California, in 1983, the summer after she was a freshman at Howard University. They said she worked at a number of stations in the restaurant, including the french-fry machine, but have not provided much other information. Her campaign did not provide the Times with any friends or family members who could vouch for the claim that she worked there, but they did identify one of Harris’ friends from when she was a teenager who said “she recalled Ms. Harris having worked at McDonald’s around that time,” telling the paper Harris’ mother mentioned the summer job.

Where Did Trump’s Allegations Come From?

The allegation that Harris is lying about working at McDonalds started circulating after the conservative outlet The Washington Free Beacon published an article in August pointing out McDonald’swas not on a job application or resume she submitted after graduating from college—though the job was for a law clerk position to which the McDonald’s experience may not have been applicable. The article did recognize Harris may have worked at McDonald’s, but said “the absence of that detail in public records and her campaign’s coyness and refusal to provide any further details raise questions about what is now a foundational narrative.”

Tangent

Derek Giacomantonio, the owner and operator of the McDonald's Trump visited, said in a statement he accepted Trump’s request to observe at his store so the former president could see the “the transformative working experience that 1 in 8 Americans have had: a job at McDonald’s.” Giacomantonio added: “As a small, independent business owner, it is a fundamental value of my organization that we proudly open our doors to everyone who visits the Feasterville community.”

Key Background

Trump has been campaigning heavily in Pennsylvania—a key battleground state in November—over the past week. After working at the McDonald’s on Sunday, Trump was scheduled to attend a town hall in Lancaster, Pennsylvania before attending the Pittsburgh Steelers football game. On Saturday, Trump made a stop in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, where he made headlines for discussing late golfer Arnold Palmer’s genitalia. Harris was also in Pennsylvania for a number of stops last week, and will return to host an event in Chester County on Monday alongside Liz Cheney. One poll of the commonwealth from last week in showed Harris with a 50%-47% advantage (closer to four points when not rounded up), though a Wall Street Journal poll from Oct. 11 showed Trump with a one-point advantage. On Sunday afternoon, FiveThirtyEight’s national average had Harris up 1.8 points on Trump, but Trump led by 0.3 points in Pennsylvania.

Further Reading