The news cycle in recent days has been filled with the bizarre story of the former president Donald Trumphis “change” to McDonald’s. It’s almost cartoonish to imagine the former president flipping burgers, taking orders or restocking fries — something straight out of a really good Saturday Night Live sketch.

But while we’re caught up in the image of Trump in a gold-arched apron tossing Big Macs, there’s a much bigger, but largely ignored, reality at play. The truth is that Donald Trump could not be hired by McDonald’s. Why? Because he is a convicted felon.

With more than 91 charges and 34 convictions for crimes spanning multiple cases, including the classified documents scandal and the attempt to overturn election results, it’s a bad picture – very bad. What we all need to understand is that with the first conviction, the idea of ​​Trump working at McDonald’s became beyond laughable. It became legally impossible.

To understand why Trump couldn’t work at McDonald’s, let’s take a look at the company’s hiring practices. McDonald’s, like many other major corporations, has strict policies when it comes to hiring felons, especially in certain states. Some locations may have programs to give second chances to non-violent offenders, but these exceptions are usually for low-level felonies or misdemeanors.

In fact, in many states, federal and state laws make it difficult for convicted felons to work in certain positions within any fast food establishment. This often depends on the nature of the crime. White-collar crime, fraud, or any hint of dishonesty makes an applicant particularly unattractive, for obvious reasons. When you’re trusted with managing money, customer data, and food service protocols, the stakes are high, even in an entry-level position.

Given the seriousness of some of the charges Trump faces, including charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, it’s safe to say he wouldn’t exactly be the ideal candidate to work the cash register. McDonald’s, like any other business, would not want to hire someone with a potential history of fraud, especially when it involves tampering with elections or classified documents.

What’s even more amazing than the fact that Trump couldn’t get a job at McDonald’s because of his looming legal troubles is that the Democratic political machine has been eerily silent on this fact. You’d think a headline like “Donald Trump wouldn’t let him work at McDonald’s” would be a 24-hour news bombshell.

Imagine the viral content: “Trump may have run the country, but he can’t even get a job at the local drive-thru.” It’s attractive, it’s timely, and it’s factually accurate.

But instead, the media has barely touched that angle. Sure, we’ve seen endless discussion of Trump’s trials, charges, convictions, and overall criminal liability, but no one has brought up the comical, yet poignant, fact that Trump’s felon status would disqualify him from working in a of the most common and iconic American jobs.

The Democratic PartyHis media arm is usually adept at seizing such opportunities. However, they let this one pass. Maybe it’s because the very idea of ​​Trump working a shift at McDonald’s is too absurd to even register in political discourse. After all, this is a man who has spent his life in penthouses and gold-plated bathrooms, flying private jets and playing golf at exclusive resorts. The contrast is so stark that it might be hard for even the most seasoned Democratic strategist to believe that voters would take the idea seriously.

But therein lies the problem. The Democratic Party often misses chances to connect to the working-class experience when it comes to framing Trump’s legal battles. This could have been one of those times. Imagine the Democratic message: “Trump can’t relate to your average American because, well, he couldn’t even be legally employed at your average job.” The symbolism of this is powerful. It could have been used to highlight Trump’s disconnect with working-class voters, who remain some of his staunchest supporters despite his billionaire status and legal troubles.

So why didn’t the media capitalize on this obvious narrative? Maybe because it doesn’t fit neatly into the rigid binary, partisan-driven structure of today’s news. Instead of focusing on these subtle but significant points, we are caught in the loop of repeating updates about Trump’s legal problems, campaign rallies, and the daily chaos of his political persona.

In addition, mainstream media tends to lean on broader, more digestible headlines that don’t require as much context. Talking about Trump’s inability to work at McDonald’s as a convicted felon requires some nuance. It requires explaining McDonald’s hiring policies, felon hiring laws, and why Trump’s legal situation is more dire than it appears on the surface. In today’s fast-paced media world, stories like these get lost in the din of clickbait headlines and sensational reporting.

But beyond the missed media opportunity, there’s a deeper point here: Trump’s legal status matters. It matters to the extent it would impact his ability to participate in basic aspects of society, such as working at a fast food restaurant. Convicted of even a single murder, never mind 34 years old, he is barred from what is perceived to be even the most routine job. So how can he hold the most powerful office in the world? This should have been the Democratic media message from the second Trump that slipped out of the fryer.

A Pulitzer Prize-nominated writer, Aron Solomon, JD, is the chief strategy officer for amplify. He has taught entrepreneurship at McGill University and the University of Pennsylvania and was named to the Fastcase 50, recognizing the top 50 legal innovators in the world. Aron was featured in Newsweek, Fast company, wealth, Forbes, CBS News, CNBC, USA Today, ESPN, Abogados, Today’s Esquire, TechCrunch, Hill, BuzzFeed, VentureBeat, The Independent, Fortune China, Yahoo! ABA Journal, Law.com, The Boston Globeand many other leading publications around the world.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer.