Former White House chef André Rush says he lost about 20,000 social media followers after appearing in a cooking video with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Rush, a retired Army master sergeant who cooked for four presidential administrations, joined Kennedy on an episode of The Real Food Show. The segment, posted in mid-September 2026, showed the pair making a cheaper, homemade version of a popular fast-food item using whole ingredients. The series is part of the administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” effort to promote affordable home cooking.
Rush later said the collaboration triggered a wave of unfollows. In comments circulating this week, he described the drop as roughly 20,000 followers and added that he was not concerned. “I don’t give a f—,” he said, according to coverage of his remarks.
Kennedy responded on X on September 28, writing that healthy food and children’s health “are not Democratic or Republican issues” and urging people to follow Rush’s account, @realchefrush, to help him recover the lost audience.
Rush built a large following after a 2018 photo of him cooking on the White House lawn went viral, highlighting both his work as a chef and his distinctive physique. He has used that platform to talk about veteran mental health and the 2,222-push-up challenge tied to suicide awareness. Wikipedia and recent interviews list him with millions of YouTube subscribers and billions of views across platforms.
The episode itself is a straightforward cooking demonstration. The backlash appears to stem less from the recipe than from Rush’s association with Kennedy, a polarizing figure whose views on food, vaccines, and public health remain sharply contested. Rush has presented the appearance as consistent with his long-standing focus on practical, healthier eating rather than a political endorsement.
Whether the follower count rebounds after Kennedy’s appeal is still unfolding. For now, the episode is a small, visible example of how quickly a cooking video can become a partisan flashpoint.
SOURCES:
Chef Andre Rush teams up with RFK Jr. for MAHA cooking show | Fox News Video
Former White House chef Andre Rush discusses cooking with RFK Jr.
Watch Chef Andre Rush teams up with RFK Jr. to make America healthy again – Fox & Friends | FOX One
