'Phony story': Trump serves fresh fries and salty jabs against Harris at McDonald's

As the race for the White House intensifies, former US President Donald Trump briefly manned the fry station at a McDonald’s, bringing the fast-food chain into the political debate. The Republican presidential nominee served fresh fries at the restaurant on Sunday, and the move was seen as a potshot at Vice President Kamala Harris’s past experience working at a McDonald’s.

However, Trump faced his own share of challenges during his visit, one of them being dodging questions about increasing the minimum wage. Wearing an apron, the former reality TV star lifted fries out of the hot oil, shook them, salted them and placed them into containers for service. He lauded the staff and the fast food chain, later to be popping his head out of the drive-through window and waving at the crowd.

While salting the fries, the ex-president did not forget to unleash salty jabs at his Democratic rival. Without giving any sort of evidence, Trump accused Harris of lying about working at McDonald’s as a way to improve her working-class credibility.

“It was a big part of her resume that she worked at McDonald’s — how tough a job it was,” Trump said at the restaurant in Feasterville, Pennsylvania. “She … made the french fries, and she talked about the heat: ‘It was so tough.’ She’s never worked at McDonald’s.”

Harris’s campaign hits back

Meanwhile, the Harris campaign spokesperson Ian Sams shot back at Trump’s false claims. “When Trump feels desperate, all he knows how to do is lie,” Sams said. “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," he added.

The campaign made it clear that Harris worked at a McDonald’s in Alameda, California, during the summer of 1983. She was a student at Howard University at the time and worked the register, as well as the french fry and ice cream machines. Interestingly, Trump was serving up the fries on Harris’ birthday.

It is pertinent to note that Trump’s love for fast food is well-documented as well. Back in 2019 while the US was facing a government shutdown under his presidency, Trump famously served McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s and Domino’s pizza on silver platters to welcome and celebrate the national college football champion Clemson Tigers during their White House visit.

While taking questions from the reporters on Sunday, the business mogul turned politician dodged questions about raising minimum wages. “Well, I think this. These people work hard,” Trump said. “They’re great. And I just saw something — a process that’s beautiful," he said. When informed by reporters that Harris was celebrating her 60th birthday, Trump finally had something nice to say. “I think I’ll get her some flowers,” he said. “Maybe I’ll get her some fries.”

With inputs from agencies.