In a scene that’s both unexpected and oddly hilarious, former President Donald Trump showed up to a McDonald’s, where he was shown how to make French fries. In the now-viral moment, shared on Twitter by Acyn, Trump can be seen standing near a fryer, intently watching the process. The whole thing feels like a bizarre reality TV moment, but there’s something undeniably amusing about seeing a former president engage in a fast-food demo.
Trump’s Bizarre, Yet Relatable Moment
Let’s be honest, seeing Trump in this context is hilarious as hell. There’s something inherently funny about watching a billionaire and former president, who is more accustomed to gold-leafed towers and private jets, engage in a task so mundane as learning how McDonald’s fries are made. It’s surreal, and the internet has exploded with laughter at the absurdity of it all.
Yet, as funny as this scene is, there’s also something more meaningful behind it. Credit where it’s due, Trump showing up at a McDonald’s speaks to a kind of relatability that politicians rarely exhibit. Sure, it’s mostly performative, but there’s a sense in which we might wish more of our leaders would show up to work at places where everyday Americans actually work.
Trump at McDonald’s being shown how French fries are made pic.twitter.com/neD4qa74MB
— Acyn (@Acyn) October 20, 2024
And of course he’s out there dishonestly attacking VP Harris:
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Here’s Trump working the fry stand:
HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAAHHAH!
The guy at McDonald’s tells Donald Trump what to do at the fry machine and he proceeds to do it wrong.
Donald can’t even follow basic instructions.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/bHCGvMWjIU
— Art Candee 🍿🥤 (@ArtCandee) October 20, 2024
Here’s Trump putting on an apron.
Trump has arrived at McDonald’s and suited up in his apron.
OMG this is all-time level stuff. 😭pic.twitter.com/XbVTIcObTk
— johnny maga (@_johnnymaga) October 20, 2024
A Deeper Dive: The Irony of Trump and The GOP’s Economic Policies
The irony in this spectacle, however, is hard to miss. Trump and the GOP have historically been opposed to raising the federal minimum wage, a position that directly impacts fast-food workers like those at McDonald’s. While Trump can be seen here engaging with the work these employees do, his policies have done little to support their financial well-being.
During his presidency, Trump made it clear that he did not support a federal minimum wage increase, a stance shared by many in the Republican Party. According to a 2020 Pew Research study:
Two-thirds of Americans (67%) support raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, including 41% who say they strongly favor such an increase, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted this spring.
Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents are largely united in backing a $15 an hour federal minimum wage: 86% favor this, including nearly six-in-ten (59%) who say they strongly support it.
Republican opinion on this issue is more divided, but a majority of Republicans and Republican leaners – 57% – oppose raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, including nearly three-in-ten (29%) who say they are strongly against it.
Yet, the GOP has consistently blocked efforts to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour, a figure that economists say is necessary for many Americans to earn a living wage. Watch this exchange with Congressman Byron Donalds:
Byron Donalds says “No American is making $7.25 and hour.”Republicans all over America like Donalds and Donald Trump don’t believe we should raise the federal minimum wage. I disagree.
When we talk about who to vote for, listen to the logic in their policy making. The market,… pic.twitter.com/sVqLDKkHIz
— Gary Chambers (@GaryChambersJr) October 19, 2024
While Biden has pushed for wage increases, Trump’s policies favored tax cuts that disproportionately benefitted wealthy individuals and corporations rather than direct wage increases for low-income workers. During the Trump era, corporate profits surged, but wage growth for low- and middle-income workers remained stagnant. According to the Economic Policy Institute, real wage growth during Trump’s presidency was slow, with increases mostly concentrated in higher-income brackets.
Wage Growth Under Biden vs. Trump
If we look at the data, there’s a clear difference between how wages fared under the two administrations. Under Trump’s tax cuts, the economy initially boomed, but much of that growth benefitted the wealthiest Americans. The middle and lower classes, including fast-food workers, didn’t see the same benefits.
The Economic Policy Institute wrote:
The lack of evidence supporting claims that the working class has prospered under the Trump administration should shock nobody—the policy record is clear that the administration’s claims to care about working-class voters’ economic plight were indeed phony. The Trump administration prioritized tax cuts for corporations, repealing access to affordable health coverage, and wrecking any institution or labor standard that gives typical workers leverage or bargaining power. The administration also did not push to raise the minimum wage, but did push to appoint hard-money cranks and reliable conservative partisans to the Federal Reserve.
It is true that some pockets of strength in wage growth have appeared during the Trump administration. But these can mostly be explained by state-level actions in raising minimum wages and a continued tightening of the labor market before 2020—a steady improvement that Trump inherited from the previous administration and which can be chalked up mostly to the Fed’s admirable forbearance in raising interest rates.
During Biden’s administration, wage growth for low-income workers, especially those in sectors like retail and food service, has been more pronounced. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average hourly wage for non-supervisory workers rose more during the first years of Biden’s presidency compared to the Trump years .
“The average hourly earnings for all employees in food services increased by 4.4% in 2021, compared to 2.8% in 2019.”
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Biden’s push for a $15 minimum wage, though still stalled in Congress, has gained widespread support, particularly in industries like fast food, where wages have long been criticized for being too low to support workers. This wage disparity highlights the importance of substantive policy when it comes to improving the lives of low-wage workers, many of whom struggle to make ends meet despite working full-time jobs.
The Reality of Working Americans
When we talk about McDonald’s workers or other service industry employees, we’re discussing people who often live paycheck to paycheck. These are individuals working long hours for minimal pay, and the pandemic has only made things more difficult. While it’s funny to see Trump interact with these workers in a lighthearted setting, it’s critical to remember that policy decisions have real-world consequences for these individuals.
The most recent hike to the federal minimum wage occurred on July 24, 2009, back when former President Barack Obama was still in his first year in office and the Black Eyed Peas topped the Billboard charts.
At that time, it rose 70 cents from $6.55 per hour to $7.25 and it has stayed there for the last 15 years. That’s the longest stretch the national minimum wage has gone without an increase since the U.S. instituted the pay standard in 1938, according to a Department of Labor timeline. Meanwhile, the value of the dollar has diminished, and prices on everyday goods have taken off.
Many fast-food workers, particularly in states that don’t mandate higher minimum wages, earn barely enough to cover basic expenses. In contrast, other countries with comparable economies have seen much higher wage floors. In the United Kingdom, for example, the minimum wage is over $12 per hour in U.S. dollars, demonstrating that higher wages for service workers are feasible without massive economic collapse .
Funny, But Eye-Opening
Trump’s McDonald’s visit is undeniably amusing, but it also sheds light on broader issues facing working Americans. While Trump and the GOP laugh off wage increases, millions of Americans continue to struggle. It’s great to see a leader engaging with the everyday lives of ordinary citizens, but the reality is that policy matters more than performative stunts.
The real takeaway? It’s one thing to show up at a McDonald’s and learn how fries are made, but it’s another to advocate for policies that ensure those making the fries are paid enough to live on. Trump may have had his moment of fun, but let’s hope that future political leaders remember that those workers deserve more than just a photo-op—they deserve fair wages.
Featured image via screengrab
