Like every 8th citizen

Kamala Harris: “I worked at McDonald’s”

US Vice President Kamala Harris

(Bild: APA/AFP)

According to US Vice President Kamala Harris, she worked at the fast food chain McDonald's as a student. "I made fries and I made ice cream. I worked at McDonald's. I was a student when I worked at McDonald's," Harris said in a video that was widely shared on social media over the weekend. 

Harris made the statement five years ago when she first ran for the Democratic presidential nomination. Surrounded by employee representatives, the clip was recorded outside a branch of the US fast food chain in Las Vegas.

Here you can see Harris' contribution from 2019 on Twitter:

The recording went viral in the run-up to a campaign appearance by the now Vice President in the US gambling metropolis on Saturday. It was not clear from the posts that the photo was already more than five years old.

Soon to be the first US head of state with Mäci on her CV?
The British newspaper "The Independent" picked up on the topic on Saturday and reported that Harris could "make history" if she wins the election. She would be the first US head of state to have previously worked at Mäci. According to the newspaper, 13 percent of Americans, or 41 million people, have worked at McDonald's at some point in their lives. Harris would, of course, not only be the first McDonald's employee, but also the first woman and the first person with Indian roots to head the US government.

One in eight Americans has worked at the fast food chain in their lifetime.

(Bild: APA/Getty Images via AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Brandon Bell)

Trump is a McDonald's fan - as a shareholder
Harris' Republican opponent Donald Trump has another point of contact with the fast food giant. The real estate tycoon revealed himself as a McDonald's shareholder twelve years ago. "I just bought shares in Tiffany&Co (US jewelry chain, ed.) and McDonald's. Two ends of the spectrum, but I like both companies," Trump wrote on X in December 2012 - two and a half years before he entered politics.

He showed his penchant for fast food seven years later as president. In January 2019, he had McDonald's burgers served in a cardboard box at a reception for the winners of the Clemson Tigers American football championships in the White House's venerable Dining Room. The reason: due to the budget dispute with Congress at the time, the kitchen in the Office of the President had to remain cold.

US Vice President Kamala Harris

(Bild: APA/AFP)

Harris wants to abolish taxes on tips
During her election campaign appearance on Saturday, Harris promised to abolish the tax on tips in the hospitality industry. In doing so, she adopted a proposal from her Republican opponent Donald Trump. "When I am president, I will continue the fight for America's working families, including raising the minimum wage and eliminating taxes on tips for service and hospitality workers," she told thousands of supporters. In Nevada, many people are employed in the hospitality industry. The state is considered one of the few "swing states" where the outcome of the US presidential election has not already been largely decided.

In the USA, it is common for service staff to only receive a low minimum wage and are dependent on tips. Unlike in Austria, for example, tips - which are usually much more generous in the USA - are not tax-free. Harris now wants to change this, but she cannot do so as President. It would require a corresponding resolution from Congress, which is currently not controlled by the ruling Democrats.