Why, Exactly, Is Donald Trump Such A Huge Fan Of McDonald's?

It's impossible to discuss celebrities' favorite McDonald's orders without covering President Donald Trump and his well-documented passion for the Golden Arches. While the POTUS makes daily headlines related to heavy-hitting (and sometimes stressful) world news, we're fascinated by a somewhat more lighthearted topic: President Trump's affinity for drive-thru burgers and fries. Who could forget the time during his first term when Trump invited the national champion Clemson Tigers football team to the White House for a generous spread of Quarter Pounders, still in their clamshell boxes? Then, on the 2024 campaign trail, he hopped behind the counter at a Pennsylvania McDonald's to man the fryolator (in part to mock Democratic candidate Kamala Harris's claim she worked for the chain in her college years). In October 2024, he made McDonald's part of his platform on Instagram, writing "When I'm president, the McDonald's ice cream machines will work great again!" He even starred in a McDonald's commercial with Grimace back in 2002, long before he waded into politics. Trump + McD's = true love, from all indications.

What's behind the MAGA leader's heart-eyes for McDonald's? The truth is more than a little fascinating. As it turns out, President Trump is something of a germaphobe, and he likes the fact that the food prep process in McDonald's is so uniform. "I'm a very clean person [...] I think you're better off going [to McDonald's] than someplace you have no idea where the food is coming from. It's a certain standard," he explained to Anderson Cooper at a town hall debate in 2016 (via Vanity Fair).

Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner said in his memoir that DJT had a favorite meal: "a McDonald's Big Mac, Filet-O-Fish, fries and a vanilla shake" (via The Hill). Campaign advisor Corey Lewandowski and former Trump aide David Bossie claimed that the Commander in Chief put down two Filet-O-Fish sandwiches and a pair of Big Macs when he was in the mood. No matter what he orders, however, Trump apparently always pairs it with Diet Coke ... to be fair, just about everyone knows that McDonald's fountain soda tastes extra good. Nor are lunch and dinner the only meals that Trump scores from McDonald's. He reportedly is not a big fan of breakfast but has been known to scarf a few Egg McMuffins on the go.

It's unlikely that a normal worker at the McDonald's order window would ever see the president in their drive-thru, as Trump has aides order his takeout for security reasons. But it's amusing to imagine the leader of the free world ordering his lunch from a McDonald's touchscreen or badgering an employee for extra sauce. In a world full of dispiriting and divisive political commentary, Donald Trump's McDonald's habit is the rare Washington, D.C. factoid that steers clear of fear and loathing and tends more firmly towards the realm of funny and interesting. Meanwhile, we'd be willing to bet that Trump is among the lucky few who has enjoyed fast food from the much-discussed McDonald's restaurant in the Pentagon, although, of course, we can't be certain.