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Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is facing criticism for altering a photo of himself, Donald Trump, Elon Musk and others eating McDonald’s on Air Force One — instead making it look as though they were partaking in a Thanksgiving meal.
RFK Jr., 71, shared the edited photo on X on Thursday, Nov. 27. “Happy Thanksgiving!” the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services captioned his post.
The original photo was taken in 2024, after Trump, 79, won the presidential election. Donald Trump Jr. and House Speaker Mike Johnson also appear, similarly eating items from McDonald’s.
The digitally altered image instead shows the group surrounded by a full spread that included turkey, brussels sprouts, corn, mashed potatoes, cranberries and more.
DonaldJTrumpJ/X
RFK Jr. faced criticism for replacing the McDonald’s food items with Thanksgiving staples in the doctored image, with many specifically calling out his ties to the “Make America Healthy Again (MAHA)” initiative.
“As fake as your medical knowledge,” one X user wrote, as another said, “So bizarre … Why do you live a lie?”
Added one other social media critic: “Try a real picture next time, not one generated with software. This makes it easy to understand why people question what is real. Who can ya trust?”
In a recent interview with The Atlantic, RFK Jr. was asked about his health outlook and how his use of tanning beds and nicotine — both of which are considered to carry major risks to the body — align with the “MAHA” ideology.
“I’m not telling people that they should do anything that I do,” the son of Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of late President John F. Kennedy said. “I just say, ‘Get in shape.’ ”
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The Atlantic story highlighted that RFK Jr. “regularly pulls Zyn nicotine pouches from his shirt pocket or desk drawers to tuck between his lower lip and gum.”
