Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump worked at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania on Sunday. He helped at the fry station before holding a quick news conference, answering reporters’ questions through the drive-thru window.
After an employee showed him how to fry the french fries, Trump took his turn and even helped fill some takeout bags.
“It requires great expertise, actually, to do it right and to do it fast,” Trump said with a grin.
This visit came as he increased his criticism of Democrat Kamala Harris and claimed—without providing evidence—that she never worked at the fast-food chain while in college, an experience she mentions during her campaign.
“I do appreciate it a little more. You say, ‘Give me french fries.’ I’ll never forget this experience,” Trump said.
During the exchange with reporters, he was asked if he would respect the results of the November 5 election, among other topics.
Trump, who still refuses to accept that he lost the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden, has said he wants this year’s victory to be so overwhelming that the results are “too big to rig.”
Trump visited a McDonald’s in Feasterville-Trevose, part of Bucks County, northeast of Philadelphia. He is a longtime fan, partial to Big Macs and Filet-o-Fish sandwiches; his staff often picks up McDonald’s and serves it on his plane.
Later on Sunday, Trump is attending an evening town hall in Lancaster before catching the Pittsburgh Steelers’ home game against the New York Jets.
The McDonald’s owner, Derek Giacomantonio, said, “It is a fundamental value of my organization that we proudly open our doors to everyone who visits the Feasterville community.”
He said in a statement that this is why he accepted Trump’s request “to observe the transformative working experience that 1 in 8 Americans have had: a job at McDonald’s.”
As Trump told reporters when he got off his plane: “I really wanted to do this all my life.”
In recent weeks, Trump has focused on the summer job Harris said she held in college, working at McDonald’s while attending Howard University in Washington. Trump says the vice president has “lied about working” there but hasn’t offered evidence.
It’s the latest example of his strategy to seize on conspiracy theories and question the credentials of his political opponents.
Police closed the busy streets around the McDonald’s during Trump’s visit.
Authorities cordoned off the restaurant as a crowd several blocks long gathered across the street, straining to catch a glimpse of Trump. Horns honked and music blared as Trump supporters waved flags, held signs, and took pictures.
Harris, who was a California prosecutor before becoming a senator and vice president, mentions her McDonald’s experience to show she understands working-class struggles.
“When Trump feels desperate, all he knows how to do is lie,” Harris campaign spokesman Ian Sams said Sunday. “He can’t understand what it’s like to have a summer job because he was handed millions on a silver platter, only to blow it.”
In an interview last month on MSNBC, the vice president pushed back on Trump’s claims, saying she did work at the fast-food chain four decades ago when she was in college.
