Donald Trump tweeted a picture of himself eating Kentucky Fried Chicken with a knife and a fork Monday, and his decision to use silverware prompted jokes and mocking from Twitter users.
The Republican presidential nominee was criticized for not using his hands and made fun of for eating what is considered to be a common everyman meal on his private jet.
“Aide: Be relatable. Appeal to common voters. Trump: I’ll eat KFC. A: Okay. T: With a knife and fork on my private jet,” one user tweeted.
Politicians have long used their food choices on the campaign trail to connect with voters, but their attempts have sometimes backfired. This isn’t the first time for Trump.
On Cinco de Mayo this year, Trump tweeted a picture of himself eating a taco bowl at Trump Tower, proclaiming, “I love Hispanics!”
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who ran against Trump in the 2016 primary, called Trump’s Cinco de Mayo taco bowl tweet “insensitive” and compared it to “eating a watermelon and saying, ‘I love African-Americans.'”
In 2011, prior to his presidential run, Trump was called out for eating pizza with a knife and a fork during his meeting with former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin at Famiglia Pizzeria in Times Square.
A native New Yorker, Trump felt compelled to explain his choice to use the plastic utensils, posting a video saying, “Frankly, it was very comfortable. Plus, this way you can take the top of the pizza off. You’re not just eating the crust. I like not to eat the crust.”
Former presidential candidate Ohio Gov. John Kasich was also mocked for eating New York City pizza with a fork while campaigning in the Empire State in March.
“Look, Robin, look, look, the pizza came scalding hot, OK?” Kasich explained in an interview with ABC’s Robin Roberts. “And so I used a little fork. You know what, my wife, who is on spring break with my daughters, she said, ‘I’m proud of you. You finally learned how to use a utensil properly.’ But I mean — not only did I eat the pizza, I had the hot sausage. It was fantastic.”
