Trump’s Lovin’ It
The number one issue facing Americans is McDonald’s, apparently
Almost 20 years ago, I worked at a local movie theater in concessions for about seven months. In short, I did the popcorn. If you asked me today to prove that I worked at that movie theater, however, I don’t believe that I could. I don’t remember the names of any of my co-workers or managers, and even if I did, and knew how to reach them, I have no reason to believe that they would remember me. I doubt that I have any kind of documentation proving that I worked there either. All I have as evidence are a few stories, like the time my popcorn machine malfunctioned without me noticing and I burnt the popcorn into black sludge that stunk up the whole atrium, or the time that I was written up for calling off with laryngitis without trying to find someone to cover my shift because I couldn’t speak. All this to say that, while I don’t necessarily believe Kamala Harris ever worked at a McDonald’s, I don’t believe that it’s reasonable to expect her to be able to prove that she did several decades ago.
Donald Trump, however, has made this into a campaign issue.
When Governor Tim Walz cosplayed as a hunter a week or so ago it came off as ridiculous because he was trying to convince Americans that he was genuine and knew what he was doing, but in reality he had no idea what he was doing and it couldn’t have been more obvious. Trump is doing almost the same thing here working at McDonald’s for a few hours, but with far more success. There are plenty of videos of Trump interacting with the staff and with the customers, and the difference between his performance and Walz’s is very clear. There are two key differences, I think, between the two. The first is that Walz has the charisma and charm of tree bark, whereas Trump is nothing if not the charming showman. This is part of why he had one of the most successful reality television shows ever. Secondly, and, I think, more importantly, Donald Trump is not trying to con you into believing that he’s a man of the people and knows exactly what to do the moment he sets foot at the fryer. He openly acknowledges that he never worked at a McDonald’s, and then goes through the process of training on how to prepare the food. Tim Walz told us that he is a hunter, and then had no idea what to do with his gun.
Trump was simply being himself while taking a hilarious dig at his political rival and charming potential voters in a swing-state, while Walz was lying and putting on a performance that fooled no one. They’re both engaging in political propaganda, but one is effective and doesn’t talk down to people, and the other is from the Harris-Walz campaign.
So did Kamala Harris actually ever work at McDonald’s? It doesn’t matter. Donald Trump was able to turn the issue, such as it is, into a memorable moment that actually will help his campaign, I think. Detractors can talk about Trump wasting his time or that this was a staged event (you don’t say?), but all they’re going to do is come across as bitter that Trump was able to take what should have been a complete non-issue and turn it into a political victory weeks ahead of the election.