--- title: Trump Feeds Football National Champions Fast Food description: The Clemson University football team was invited to the White House Monday and Trump fed the players a very nontraditional White House meal. canonical: https://time.com/5502838/trump-clemson-football/ author: Tara Law article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-01-15T01:42:17.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-13T08:20:01.964Z og:title: President Trump Feeds College Football National Champions 'Hamberders' and Twitter Can't Stomach It og:description: "We have some very large people that like eating. So I think we’re going to have a little fun" og:url: https://time.com/5502838/trump-clemson-football/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt239340ec30b7fdfa/6989433e97cdffece26b7261/fast-food-white-house.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: Photo by Chris Kleponis - Pool/Getty Images og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Trump Feeds College Football National Champions 'Hamberders' and Twitter Can't Stomach It twitter:description: "We have some very large people that like eating. So I think we’re going to have a little fun" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt239340ec30b7fdfa/6989433e97cdffece26b7261/fast-food-white-house.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Trump Feeds College Football National Champions 'Hamberders' and Twitter Can't Stomach It > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=ec706d52-33bf-4ae5-8832-76df264119f1&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: President Trump Feeds College Football National Champions Fast Food and Twitter Can't Stomach It [Watch (HLS stream): President Trump Feeds College Football National Champions Fast Food and Twitter Can't Stomach It](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/pl7W1MfU.m3u8) (1:19)  _Published 2019-01-15. The Clemson University football team was invited to the White House Monday, after winning the College Football National Championship. However, President Trump decided to feed the players a very nontraditional White House meal._  by [Tara Law](https://time.com/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Jan 15, 2019 1:42 AM UTC The Clemson University football team was invited to the White House Monday, after winning the College Football National Championship. However, President Trump decided to feed the players a very nontraditional White House meal.  by [Tara Law](https://time.com/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Jan 15, 2019 1:42 AM UTC The Clemson University football team was invited to the White House Monday to celebrate their College Football National Championship win in a scene that was also a feast for social media users. The South Carolina team, which defeated the University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide 44-16 on Jan. 7, was offered a candelabra-lit spread of takeout food from McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King and Domino’s. In a since-deleted tweet, the president boasted that the group was served 1,000 “hamberders” at the event that he paid for himself – a spelling error that immediately prompted online snickers. Meanwhile, aides said there were closer to 300 burgers at the event. The President reportedly paid for the food himself because many of the White House staff are furloughed due to the partial government shutdown, Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley told CNN in a statement. Trump, who has claimed to be a big fan of fast food himself, told reporters before the event, “We have some very large people that like eating. So I think we’re going to have a little fun.” Later, Twitter users had more than a little fun with the “hamberders” typo. > [](https://twitter.com/PadmaLakshmi/status/1085175508738981888) > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1085207864224960519) > [](https://twitter.com/BurgerKing/status/1085213382192627717) > [](https://twitter.com/ddale8/status/1085161986353229824) Some pointed out that nothing kept the fast food warm as it sat on the tables. While Trump’s critics implied that the junk food was a good metaphor for the President himself. “This is an incredible self-own for someone who aims to be worth $10 billion,” wrote user Judd Legum. > [](https://twitter.com/JuddLegum/status/1084956291896930307) > [](https://twitter.com/MatthewACherry/status/1084958845586202624) > [](https://twitter.com/MSNBC/status/1084951068923125760) > [](https://twitter.com/JonathanOsman/status/1084958792792584193) The meal also caught the attention of former NFL running back Reggie Bush, who tweeted that the dinner was “disrespectful on so many levels.” > [](https://twitter.com/ReggieBush/status/1085038754673258498) In a video of the event, the players seem to be enjoying the food. One player loudly says that the food is “awesome.” “I thought it was a joke,” he adds. > [](https://twitter.com/DarrenMHaynes/status/1084958995025195008) ## Transcript [00:00] I had a choice, do we have no food for you? Because [00:03] we have a shut down or do we give you some little, [00:06] quick salads that the first lady will make along [00:10] with the second lady, they'll make some salads. And I [00:13] said, you guys aren't into salads. Or do I go out, [00:16] Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott, do I go out and Send [00:20] out for about 1, 000 hamburgers. [ LAUGH ] Yeah. [00:24] Big Bucks, so we actually that we bought 1, 000, [00:27] Burger King, all American companies. Burger King, [00:30] Wendies, and McDonalds. We have Big Bucks, we have [00:33] Quarter Pounder with Cheese, we have everything that [00:35] I like, that you like, [ LAUGH ] And I know, no matter [00:39] what we did there's nothing you can have that's better [00:41] than that. Right? 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