What does President Donald Trump love? Fast food. There are probably other things, but fast food is the safest bet. He loves it so much, in fact, that for the second time in just a few short months, he graced high-achieving athletes with fast food at the White House.
This time, the lucky diners were the North Dakota State Bison football team, seven-time winners of the NCAA’s Football Championship Subdivision. If you remember the last time Trump presented fast food as though it were a gift to the masses, you’ll recall that it was the Clemson University Tigers who had to suffer through it in January. This happened during Trump’s partial government shutdown, so some people gave him a little slack. He made a point of letting the American people know that he paid for their Big Macs out of his own pocket, after all.
But now, he’s making himself—and his budget—perfectly clear.
"We could've had chefs, we could have, but we had fast food—because I know you people," President Donald Trump said to extremely awkward laughter.
Luckily, there’s a video of the whole exchange, embedded below.
The president then went on to reference the numerous chicken sandwiches piled in front of him.
"Chick-Fil-A, they say? Chick-Fil-A," he said, affirming that he can, at minimum, recognize fast food logos.
“I know you people,” Trump added. “We like American companies.”
Ah, yes. American companies like Chick-fil-A, whose CEO, Dan Cathy, famously opposed same-sex marriage in 2012. On top of that, the chain has donated millions to anti-gay groups. Lovely.
Trump could have sought out food made by immigrants of which there are many amazing options in Washington. Or food from a black-owned business which, thanks to gentrification, are up against unfair challenges in the District. He could have supported a woman-owned restaurant. He’s the president, so he could have had just about anything he wanted.
So of course, he went with fast food.
From the awkward laughs in the video, the players seem to be good sports. But if they’re feeling disappointed (or simply shocked), they aren’t in the wrong.
“This isn’ t a political trip,” Coach Matt Entz said to the Grand Forks Herald in an interview about the team’ s trip. “This is a Bison trip and, personally, I sold it as two things: It’s one more opportunity for the 2018 team to be together, but also in my mind the start of the 2019 season and the things we’re going to do together.”
“We sold it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that we’re taking,” Entz continued. “I want to make this as great of an experience of being part of Bison football as possible.”
A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is probably accurate. And how does Trump celebrate? With Big Macs.