failed to follow simple instructions when he appeared in uniform at a branch of while on the campaign trail.
The handed out fries at a - bizarrely answering questions through the drive-thru window. An employee at the Feasterville branch showed Mr Trump how to dunk baskets of fries in oil, salt the fries and put them into boxes using a scoop, as reporters and aides watched on.
The employee then showed the presidential hopeful how to drain oil away from the fries by simply moving the handle of the basket upwards - eliminating the need to shake off any oil from the . Mr Trump then appeared to become confused about the positioning of the baskets. And, embarrassingly, when he tried to work the fryer on his own, he appeared to ignore the instructions of the worker and shook the basket of fries, despite being explicitly told not to do so just moments before.
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Mr Trump, a well-known fan of fast food and a notorious germaphobe, appeared to express amazement that he did not have to touch the fries with his hands. "It requires great expertise, actually, to do it right and to do it fast," Mr Trump said with a grin, putting away his suit jacket and wearing an apron over his shirt and tie. "I do appreciate it a little more. You say, ‘Give me French fries.' I'll never forget this experience.”
Trump is a long-time fan of McDonald's, and is partial to Big Macs and Filet-o-Fish sandwiches and often tasks staff members to pick up McDonald's to have on his plane. Derek Giacomantonio, franchise owner of the branch Trump visited, said: "It is a fundamental value of my organisation we proudly open our doors to everyone who visits the Feasterville community."
Police closed the busy streets around the McDonald's during Trump's visit. Authorities cordoned off the restaurant as a crowd a couple blocks long gathered, sometimes 10- to 15-deep, across the street straining to catch a glimpse of Trump. Horns honked and music blared as Trump supporters waved flags, held signs and took pictures.
The visit came as he tried to counter nominee ' accounts on the campaign trail of working at the fast-food chain while in college, an experience that Trump has claimed, without offering evidence, never happened.
After serving bags of takeaway to people in the drive-thru lane, Mr Trump leaned out of the window, still wearing the apron, to take questions from the media outside. The former president, who has constantly promoted falsehoods about his 2020 election loss, said he would respect the results of next month's vote "if it's a fair election".
He joked about getting one reporter ice cream and when another asked what message he had for Ms Harris on her 60th birthday on Sunday, Mr Trump said, "I would say happy birthday Kamala", adding: "I think I'll get her some flowers."
Mr Trump did not directly answer a question about whether he might support increased minimum wages after seeing McDonald's employees in action but said: "These people work hard. They're great", adding: "I just saw something, a process that's beautiful." When aides finally urged him to wrap things up so he could hit the road to his next event, Mr Trump said: "Wasn't that a strange place to do a news conference?"
Mr Trump has long questioned Ms Harris' story of working at McDonald's and has fixated in recent weeks on the summer job she said she held in college, working the cash register and making fries at McDonald's. Mr Trump said the vice president has "lied about working" there, but offered no evidence for claiming that.
In an interview last month on , the vice president pushed back on Mr Trump's claims, saying she did work at the fast-food chain four decades ago when she was in college. "Part of the reason I even talk about having worked at McDonald's is because there are people who work at McDonald's in our country who are trying to raise a family," she said. "I worked there as a student."
