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Image showed the MAGA allies around a feast of turkey, cranberries, vegetable dishes and pie - but all was not as it seemed
Katie Hawkinsonin Washington, D.C.Friday 28 November 2025 15:32 GMTComments
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As far as Thanksgiving messages go, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s effort was a bit of a turkey.
The Health and Human Services Secretary shared a badly photoshopped image of himself, President Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr., billionaire Elon Musk and House Speaker Mike Johnson gathered around a Thanksgiving meal on a plane.
Kennedy, 71, posted the photo Thursday afternoon on his official X account, captioning it: “Happy Thanksgiving!”
The image showed the MAGA allies around a feast of turkey, cranberries, vegetable dishes and pie. But social media users were quick to point out that the image was altered, noting that the original photograph was taken a year ago on Trump Force One, and the table was actually covered in fast food.
Trump Jr. shared the original photo, on November 17, 2024, of the group gathered around trays of McDonald’s, a favorite of Trump’s. Kennedy, who has spearheaded the “Make America Healthy Again” movement, was even pictured holding a McDonald’s burger.
open image in gallerySecretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was ridiculed for posting an altered photo of himself, President Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Elon Musk and House Speaker Mike Johnson enjoying a Thanksgiving meal (Robert F. Kennedy Jr)“Make America Healthy Again starts TOMORROW,” Trump Jr. captioned the photo, which he shared just days after his father was elected to a second term in the White House.
Some users criticized Kennedy’s post, suggesting he may have altered the photo using artificial intelligence — which Trump himself has used for some videos and photos posted on Truth Social.
“The use of generative AI should be banned from political campaigning and from all official accounts,” one X user wrote. “Simple as that.”
Another user wrote: “Now the government is posting weird AI-generated photos. Seems like a very bad idea.”
But other users were less critical. “That meal is WAY better and more MAHA than the original McDonald's photo,” one user wrote on X. “Happy Thanksgiving!”
open image in galleryThe original photo, shared by Donald Trump Jr. in November 2024, shows the group eating McDonald's food, instead of a Thanksgiving feast (Donald Trump Jr.)The Independent has contacted Kennedy’s office for comment.
The president’s son explained the backstory behind the photo in an interview with late conservative activist Charlie Kirk last year, even revealing that Kennedy ate some of the fast food.
“That was a 3 a.m. McDonald's run,” Trump Jr. said of the photo. “You know, Bobby did have some McDonald's. We definitely had some fun with that one, the memes about it.”
“I mean, yeah, he definitely looks like he got his hand caught in the cookie jar with that one, so we sort of joked, ‘MAHA starts on Monday,’” he continued. “Like all good diets, you’ve got to be able to have a cheat day every once in a while.”
It’s no secret that Trump is a fan of the fast food chain, and he even used a McDonald’s fryer last year for a campaign photo-op. Kennedy, meanwhile, is less enthused about fast food. He is an outspoken opponent of seed oils and food dyes, which are often used by fast food chains. Kennedy has also said he prefers his food cooked in beef tallow.
open image in galleryThen-presidential candidate Donald Trump prepares McDonald’s fries during a campaign photo-op in October 2024 (Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)Kennedy called the food that Trump eats “poison” on November 11, 2024, just days before the McDonald’s photo was posted.
“The stuff that he eats is really bad,” Kennedy said on The Joe Polish Show, a podcast about business and marketing.
“Campaign food is always bad, but the food that goes onto that airplane is like just poison,” he added, referring to Trump’s plane. “You have a choice between—you don’t have the choice, you’re either given KFC or Big Macs. That’s when you’re lucky and then the rest of the stuff I consider kind of inedible.”
Kennedy’s wife, Cheryl Hines, recently discussed his diet on an episode of The Katie Miller Show. The podcast is hosted by the wife of Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security.
“He’s so dedicated to this diet that he’s eating that he will bring his own sauerkraut to a restaurant,” Hines said last month.
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