General U.S. NewsOct 30, 2026·2 min read

Why is the Cheesecake Factory at the center of the latest culture war?

NPR – Politics

6d ago

Why is the Cheesecake Factory at the center of the latest culture war?

Summary

The Cheesecake Factory is seen on May 02, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia. Kayla Bartkowski/Getty hide caption They say there's no such thing as bad publicity. If that's true it's been a golden week for the Cheesecake Factory restaurant chain. The furore began when former President Obama, stumping for Democrats in Ohio this week ahead of the midterms, joked about President Trump's White House refurbishments, saying they looked "like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory. Just gold everywhere." The late Iraqi dictator was known for building lavish palaces, with gold walls, cabinets of gold-plated rifles, a golden throne and of course plenty of depictions of the man himself. Trump is also well-known for his love of anything gilded and Obama joked he'd been "supergluing gold medallions to the mantel in the Oval Office," while also paving over the Rose Garden and "building a ballroom that's bigger than the White House." Former President Barack Obama speaks during a campaign rally for Democratic Ohio Senate candidate Sherrod Brown, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Cleveland. Sue Ogrocki/AP hide caption And the Cheesecake Factory? The beloved U.S. restaurant chain was started in 1978 by David Overton, whose mother reportedly made a fine cheesecake, and now has 218 locations across the country and an annual revenue of $1.03 billion. Obama was undeterred, taking up the theme again at a rally in Georgia on Wednesday, and saying that he was surprised that instead of hitting back on his criticisms about policy and corruption, the White House was more upset about the Cheesecake Factory remark. Trump told supporters at a political rally in Texas that they could spend the $5,000 he's promised every adult citizen if the Republicans keep Congress on dining out at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

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A joke by former President Obama has gone viral and received backlash from the Trump administration as the issue of affordability looms large over next week's midterm elections. (Image credit: Kayla Bartkowski)

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