Does McDonald's hire convicted felons? Trump's criminal history explored as ex-president works at fast-food drive-thru
On October 20, 2024, former President Donald Trump made a stop at a McDonald's franchise in Pennsylvania while campaigning in the state. Pictures and videos of the former president wearing an apron as he worked as a fry attendant went viral. He also handed out food to customers at the drive-through window, telling them that he had made it and that it was on him.
According to AP News, Trump's visit to McDonald's was prompted by his opponent, Kamala Harris, who had previously claimed to have worked at the fast-food chain while she was in college. The former president alleged that Harris never worked at McDonald's without offering any evidence for the same.
While the visit garnered a lot of attention, X users began stating that Trump's felony convictions on charges of falsifying business records would prevent him from getting a job at McDonald's.
However, as per Felony Record Hub, McDonald's doesn't have an official policy on barring employment for all felons. The website stated that it might be difficult for those convicted of serious offenses like theft, drug convictions, armed robbery, or assault. Moreover, it is also up to the franchise owner's discretion if they'd be willing to hire a felon.
Donald Trump is the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes: Republican candidate's criminal history explored
According to PEOPLE dated June 15, 2024, Donald Trump has been charged with a total of 88 felony counts comprising four criminal investigations and has been found guilty in 34 of them so far.
In April 2023, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office charged the former president with falsifying 34 financial records "with intent to defraud." These charges related to a hush money payment of $130,000 made to adult film star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign to stop her from talking about an alleged affair they had in 2006. In May 2024, he was found guilty on all 34 felony counts.
In June 2023, Trump was indicted by a federal grand jury for reportedly mishandling classified documents, which he allegedly took to his Mar-a-Lago residence after leaving office. He was charged with 32 counts of willful retention of national defense information, violating the Espionage Act, and eight counts including conspiracy to obstruct justice, withholding a document or record, and making false statements.
The Republican candidate pleaded not guilty to all counts, and the case was dismissed on July 15, 2024, by a Florida judge.
In August 2023, the Republican candidate was indicted for a third time, wherein prosecutors alleged he conspired to overturn the 2020 election results by knowingly using false claims of election fraud "to obstruct the federal government function by which those results are collected, counted, and certified."
In this case, he was charged with four counts, including conspiracy against the rights of citizens and conspiracy to defraud the US. While the trial for this case is yet to take place, the revised indictment of the same relates to Trump's status as a political candidate instead of a sitting president.
In mid-August 2023, Donald Trump was indicted for the fourth time after Georgia prosecutors presented evidence to a grand jury, showing that the former president and 18 other defendants allegedly conspired to overturn Georgia's 2020 election results. He was charged with 13 criminal counts, including an alleged violation of the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (Rico).
However, three charges were dismissed by Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee, stating the indictment did not offer enough detail, reducing the total number of charges to 10.
During his visit and campaign stop at McDonald's in Pennsylvania, Trump avoided answering a question about whether he would support increased minimum wages after witnessing McDonald's employees at work. However, the former president acknowledged that the employees work hard, calling them "great."
In other news, the upcoming U.S. presidential elections are scheduled to be held on November 5, 2024.