McDonald’s (MCD) is living every major brand’s biggest social media nightmare.
The fast food chain’s Twitter verified account was taken over Thursday morning by someone who slammed President Trump and called him “a disgusting excuse of a President.” The tweet was briefly pinned to the top of McDonald’s corporate account and then deleted, but not before it called for the return to power of Trump’s predecessor, President Obama. It also mocked the size of Trump’s hand, reportedly something of a sore point for the president.
“@realDonaldTrump You are actually a disgusting excuse of a President and we would love to have @BarackObama back, also you have tiny hands,” the tweet read.
Luckily for Trump, a big McDonald’s fan, the tweet was not really from the burger chain.
The president once appeared in an ad for the restaurant company and has been photographed eating McDonald’s food. Though it could have been tempting to believe the tweet was real—former Obama press secretary Robert Gibbs now heads McDonald’s global communications—McDonald’s says it was hacked.
“Twitter notified us that our account was compromised. We deleted the tweet, secured our account and are now investigating this,” McDonald’s told Coins2Day in an e-mailed statement.
Some of the damage was already done. Many on Twitter were threatening to boycott McDonald’s, though others praised the tweet. At a time of such polarized politics, the last thing brands want is to be drawn into the political fights of the day. Ask Nordstrom (JWN): the luxury department store got slammed last month when it announced it had dropped Ivanka Trump’s fashion lines, blaming falling sales.
