Cross-posted from “Too Bad, So Sad, Too Late - McDonald’s tells U.S. restaurants it’s not a ‘political brand’ after Trump visit” by @JimmyBigSausage@lemm.ee in !news@beehaw.org
Excerpt:
Though President Donald Trump visited a Pennsylvania McDonald’s location on Sunday, the fast-food giant is trying to stay neutral in the presidential race.
“As we’ve seen, our brand has been a fixture of conversation in this election cycle. While we’ve not sought this, it’s a testament to how much McDonald’s resonates with so many Americans. McDonald’s does not endorse candidates for elected office and that remains true in this race for the next President,” the company said in an internal message viewed by CNBC and confirmed by a source familiar with the matter.
I haven’t eaten at a McDonalds since before covid, and I don’t really miss it.
They made their choice.
I’m not sure why the scrutiny. The McDonalds he visited was owned as a franchisee. This is true of 95% of McDonalds. The franchise is effectively letting them use their name so long as they pay them for every stage of their operations (royalty on sales, franchise starting fee, equipment manufactured under McDonalds is the only approved equipment, and profit on food product being sold in bulk to the restaurant). McDonalds is evil, but it’s not because they endorse Trump, it’s mostly because they’re a leech company who wants to distance themselves from risk by contracting out over 95% of their revenue streams labor.
As far as the politicizing goes, it’s mostly because most people don’t know what you just said. They see “McDonalds” and don’t think of local franchises; they think Big McD (corporate/the whole company).
I think the other point of controversy is that franchises typically aren’t allowed to sub-lease, so to speak, the name/brand. They represent corporate, basically, and anything they’d do that may harm the reputation would not be viewed favorably by the higher ups. I’m not clear on the franchise agreements, but it wouldn’t be out of the question for those to be revoked / refused to renew if a particular location was causing headaches for the main brand.
If McDonald’s isn’t political, they should have that as part of the brand standards to which franchisees must adhere.
McDonalds’ opposition to unions is political.
“Upon learning of the former president’s request, we approached it through the lens of one of our core values: we open our doors to everyone,” the company said.
When you’re door is open to fascist demagogues, it’s not open to everyone.
If your company platforms racists, it’s a racist company.
If a Nazi sits at a table with 9 others and no one objects, there are 10 Nazis sitting at that table.
we open our doors to everyone
So I can have my local McDonald’s close for several hours while I get some vanity pictures of me standing in front of a fryer?
“… we open our doors to everyone,” the company said.
But also you must leave within 30 mins or it’s loitering and you will be trespassed.
Allowing everyone behind the counter serving food to unknowing customers sounds like a massive health code violation.
Without a hair net or hand washing in Trumps case. Photo op is gonna get y’all sick and you’ll deserve.
They don’t care. Nazis have money too, and McDonalds doesn’t discriminate.
You claim to not be a political company, but you gave a platform to a facist rapist ~3 weeks before his election
It was a franchise that did it, and a shitty one at that.
They haven’t revoked the franchise license which means they support the action.
Can they revoke a franchise that quickly?
They can immediately make a public statement that they are trying to. The fact that they haven’t means they support the stunt, but want to pretend otherwise so that they don’t lose customers.
It was probably a franchise owner that did it and corporate didn’t know till the rest of us.
Obviously fuck Sicky D’s, but I bet corporate is more pissed off than anyone else.
They did know beforehand, an AP article said as much:
“Upon learning of the former president’s request, we approached it through the lens of one of our core values: we open our doors to everyone,” the company said. “McDonald’s does not endorse candidates for elected office and that remains true in this race for the next president. We are not red or blue – we are golden.”
This gives me a great reason to never eat at McDonald’s again.
Open doors to anyone, by closing them for anyone not pre approved to show up when Trump was there.
That’s a hail-mary reframe for “piss-colored”.
Nearly had it, too.
“- we are golden, like the shower”
Fixed that for them.
To be fair, they can’t stop a franchisee from being a dip shit - even though it is causing serious damage to the brand.
They can. They own the property as a requirement for franchising. If they don’t want it to happen they can deny the request and remove for trespassing anyone who doesn’t cooperate.
They could’ve theoretically played it that way, but they didn’t. They said they got the request and approved it.
Nope the corporate had to have been fully aware since there was a joke on SNL about his visit happening the next day. It was in the news that it was gonna happen and McDonald’s did nothing to stop it.
since there was a joke on SNL about his visit happening the next day
It was in the news
I think you’re confused.
Because I said they likely found out when everyone else did…
And you replied saying they found out…
When everyone else did?
McDonald’s did nothing to stop it.
Then there’s the part where I’d still need to explain how franchising works
McD’s might be unique in this regard, but they actually own the land the building is on for most franchises. So they’d have the authority to deny if they wanted to (at least in the standard agreement in the US).
This was well explained in the biopic, The Founder https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4276820/
Sadly, it makes sense that corporate would not deny it in this case - the store was going to be closed so there was no impact on business (as compared to the store being closed for a more typical reason), and they’d probably fear the public relations backlash after seeing “McD refuses to allow store to be borrowed by GOP/MAGA campaign”
Then there’s the part where I’d still need to explain how franchising works
Hah! I love how palpable you made your exasperation!
McDonalds is a franchise, local owners are separate entities from the franchise “parent”.
Plus, McDonalds is a huge company. They probably couldn’t move their massive legal machinery to respond in time to stop it. Even if they could they would probably have had to know which franchisee was doing it ahead of time, and also have to find something in the franchise agreement specifically they were violating.
In b4 McD’s changes the franchising agreement to require all events with media present to be approved by McD’s corp prior to the event.
I would be surprised if they don’t already have this
If they had done something to stop it, they would have been sued by the franchise owner who did nothing to violate the franchise agreement.
Which is interesting, because usually corporate has all the power in franchise agreements.
They could have made their “we’re not political” announcement the day after it was announced, instead of after the event already happened.
It is a difficult position to be in.
So the crazy makes a plan with a local franchise owner. Tells corporate he has already said yes. Even though they likely don’t want anything to do with it, as it is a no win situation for them, they are fucked either way.
They have the shit job of saying no one of the most petty people in the world; who may be the next president. He could tell his cult to avoid McD’s because they snubbed him etc…so now it is either piss off the MAGA crowd, quite possibly their biggest market, or piss off the dems…
McD’s is not great food, but it isn’t terrible either. I don’t envy the higher ups having to make this situation palatable.
Their statement is pretty good though.
we open our doors to everyone
This is basically saying even though he is a criminal, we would still give him a chance. That is a dem dog-whistle if ever I saw one.
They can distance themselves all they want. The damage is done.
They’re all franchises
I can’t imagine there is anything in the contract they violated either.
But, that being said, I would certainly avoid that Macca’s and the franchise owners ones
I can’t imagine there is anything in the contract they violated either.
That’s part of the damage done. They can claim they’re non-political, but they allow their franchisees to make corporate appear political, because they’re basically the same thing to the average person because they don’t know the difference.
Streisand effect. Firstly, the first thing Trump dumbasses are going to do is claim freedom of speech and start trashing maccas joints. Doing that will hurt all maccas franchises and make it dangerous for them.
Secondly, not if its not in the contract… Trump will threaten to fight for them. It won’t matter if he loses (Right wing idiots will pretend they’re winning). Maccas is a global brand, so there is a lot of potential for damage.
Best thing to do is simply block the franchise owner from getting any more franchises, and prioritise other franchise owners. It’s subtle, and it works longer term
Too late! MAGADonalds is now as toxic as Chik-Fil-A (both politically and to your colon)
I still hate the chicken place more. On top of the other overtly political shit, I really dislike how they get their shitty restaurants into airports and thruways and other places with captive audiences and then still close on Sunday just for their virtue signalling bullshit. If they were actual Christians they would pay their employees more and open on Sundays to give food to the hungry. Hell even Ronald gives some money to orphans.
thruways
Exactly what they did in New York State. What use is a highway rest stop where the main food store is closed on Sunday?
But the company that New York gave the contract to is the problem. They made those rest stops too small. All it takes is one bus stopping and the line for the tiny restrooms will take a half an hour. I hope the company goes bankrupt and they tear them all down again and rebuild them to be the proper size.
You know I’ve been thinking about this since the memes are really driving home this association between the Hamberdler and McD’s. I wonder if this will push people away from buying their food on the long term and inadvertently lead to some subset of the population eating healthier than they otherwise would have. Probably just wishful thinking on my part though.
Yeah although probably bk will just double down on the impossible menu, igniting the first of the burger wars.
You can’t just say it. Where’s the action?
Revoke that fucker’s franchisee licenses to start. He’ll paint the building red white and blue, rename it Magadonalds, and they’ll all flock to it and get dysentery from the freedom meals until it closes down when it’s revealed that he’s been molesting kids at the Sunday school he “volunteered” at
He’ll paint the building red white and blue, rename it Magadonalds,
I’m not saying that won’t happen, but it would be a colossal fuck up. McDonald’s owns most of the buildings and leases them out to franchisees. https://www.wallstreetsurvivor.com/mcdonalds-beyond-the-burger/
It seems that most McDonald’s are removing EVERYTHING from their lobbies. No more free refills on drinks, no ketchup or salt, even napkins are behind the counter now. Makes for a considerably more annoying visit, especially as they’re woefully understaffed, so you have to wait for someone to be bothered to get a couple napkins and ketchup while your kid screams at you.
The point is to not have a lobby anymore.
The US has always been obsessed with the drive-thru (nothing says good eats quite like huffing car fumes) and covid pushed a shift toward people just buying fast food to take home and eat.
So discourage people from dining in until “The demand is low so we are being more green or some shit by getting rid of it”.
The original McDonald’s didn’t have a lobby. You were supposed to eat the food in your car.
It looks like McDonald’s is trying to get back to its roots.
Makes sense, except that they won’t get any of this business if they take away the play-place. I’m already leaning away from McDonald’s due to this.
I mean this in the most polite way imaginable but: You don’t matter. You are an individual whose stated stance is far from the majority of their consumer base.
Also: I very much won’t go to a place that I know is drive-thru only. But the number of times where I needed a quick bite to eat after a flight and the lobby of the taco bell or whatever was locked and I just went through the drive thru instead? People will adapt pretty quick.
Which… is the entire point. If people know that getting a napkin or a ketchup packet involves talking to the one person at the counter then they will stop dining in at all. Which will make removing the dine-in even less disruptive.
They’ve also been supporting the IDF for a while now. Fuck McDonalds.
i believe this is simplification for automation. dont need humans if you dont need resources in the lobby.
Some fast food places near me have started using automated ordering at the window ie a chatbot
Also order-yourself screens in the inside ordering zones
Which I guess is cool or whatever but some of us don’t mind human interaction and are fine paying .50 extra for a taco if that keeps someone employed until we can figure out how to move to a more automated world without fucking over those at the bottom
It is more that the cost of operating a dining area isn’t worth it for a lot of fast food restaurants.
You have to dedicate staff time to maintaining the dining area. You also have have to maintain a public restroom, even if it is only for customers. At best, you only get the random biohazard of someone shitting themselves. It then slides to being the bathroom and living room to an unhoused population or a place where junkies go to do heroin.
My point is that I don’t want to wait for a human interaction. Just let me grab some ketchup from a bin and go on with my day.
but who fills the bin?
The people still there, I can think of several mechanisms some of which are a hundred years old at least that could allow automatic dispensing of such items. But McDonald’s sucks so obviously they wont invest in such mechanisms.
A robot? SOMEONE has to fill the robots with “meat” “cheese” and “bread” so one more thing to dispense ketchup, mustard, salt and pepper would be easy enough.
People hate on burger king but the last time I went in there, it was nicely renovated, clean, had all the refill machines available. Much better experience than McDonald’s
It’s a LITTLE more expensive, which is ok, but sucks with kid who will often times waste entire meals… plus generally they don’t have the jungle gym-playplaces. For solo meals I much prefer ANYWHERE else, but with kids they have a built-in (literally) advantage. That said, if they make it annoying enough, I won’t bother anymore and have heard the same from other parents.
Oh look, a sack of shit serving shit food.
Fuck McDonald’s.
A sack of shit serving sacks of shit
McDonald’s trials a second clown in bizarre PR stunt, attempts to distance themselves immediately after.
McDonald’s today attempts to disavow a PR stunt after backlash regarding a second clown character being added to the fandom. Reviewers described the addition as “depressingly old,” “demented,” and “a massive health code violation.”
Other reviewers were appalled at the character’s backstory. “This is supposed to be a family restaurant,” said one online complaint, “they’re adding a character who is rapist wearing orange clown makeup? I know we’re close to Halloween but that is just completely unacceptable. I cannot bring my children here.”
I haven’t eaten at McDogball’s in years. Their food has always been trash and now it’s overpriced trash. If this steers more people away from eating there for political reasons then all the better.
I went to McDonald’s two years ago because I was craving fries. The “value meal” was $12. Or I could pay that much for regular food that doesn’t give me diarrhea.
Last time I shared this, some McFanboy recommended the app for the real savings and I just… No.
They should try telling their franchisees that…
Finally a clown with more makeup than Ronald McDonald.
Ah yes, damage control. You chose this, Mickey D’s, now would a sales slump ‘resonate’ with your shareholder clowns?
That’s not how franchising works
Does corporate not make money from franchises? Honest question because I thought it worked that way.
They could revoke the franchise license. They won’t though.
Sure, but that would be entirely in hindsight versus when they allegedly “chose this” by being completely uninvolved in the franchisee’s decision.
Who cares? They’re proving their support, right now, by not providing any consequences or even condemnation.
