8 Surprising First Jobs of Trump, Harris and Other Famous Politicians
Written by
G. Brian Davis
Edited by
Rebekah Evans
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Sure, some politicians never worked a humble part-time job in high school or college. But most — even politicians who make it to the top echelons of government — spent their teenage years doing grunt work like the rest of us.
For a stroll down the memory lane of those who later became elite, consider these politicians who took whatever work they could in their youth.
Kamala Harris: Fry Cook at McDonalds
“I worked at McDonalds when I was a student, doing french fries and ice cream,” the presidential candidate posted on X back in 2019, campaigning on the picket lines among fast food workers.
It turns out that she’s not the only nationally-prominent politician from recent years who worked as a fry cook under the golden arches. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves.
Donald Trump: Soda Bottle Collector
“I accompanied my father to his sites and would collect soda bottles with my brother for the deposit money,” Donald Trump told Forbes, before his days as a politician. “That was my first income.”
Barack Obama: Ice Cream Scooper at Baskin Robbins
Not many people hate ice cream, but if you spend enough time smelling and scooping hard ice cream, you might not like it either.
“Scooping ice cream is tougher than it looks,” the former president told ABC. “Rows and rows of rock-hard ice cream can be brutal on the wrists.”
My mother tells a similar story about scooping ice cream in her teens. She said the owner let employees eat as much ice cream as they want, knowing that within a week they’ll lose all interest in it — especially if they overindulge.
Paul Ryan: Fry Cook at McDonalds
Across the aisle from Harris, the famous Republican also poured soft-serve ice cream at Mickey D’s.
In fact, Bloomberg reported that one of the richest people in the world, Jeff Bezos, flipped burgers at the famous chain as well.
Bill Clinton: Grocery Store Stacker
At age 13, Bill Clinton worked stacking produce at a local grocery store for a whopping $1 an hour.
In an interview with Conan O’Brien, Clinton recounted that he had no fewer than 23 jobs over the course of his career.
Ronald Reagan: Lifeguard
Everyone knows Ronald Reagan as an A-list actor pre-presidency, but he didn’t start out strolling the red carpet. As a teen, he worked as a lifeguard at Rock River in Lowell Park in Dixon, Illinois.
And a talented one, at that: according to MillerCenter, he saved 77 people from drowning.
Jimmy Carter: Peanut Farming
Carter grew up on a peanut farm nearly a century ago and started working the farm at the tender age of 10.
He stacked the peanuts into a wagon, hauled them to town (Plains, Georgia) and sold them. Over the next three years he saved enough money to buy five horses at Depression-era discount prices, per MillerCenter.
Richard Nixon: Poultry Plucker
Before getting metaphorically tarred and feathered himself as a resigning president, Nixon plucked chickens for a butcher shop in Prescott, Arizona in 1928.
Time Magazine shared that he worked many other sundry jobs. From janitor to pool boy at a country club, carnival barker to clerk at his father’s grocery store, Nixon never shied away from work.
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