Washington (AFP) - From hidden vegetables for Donald Trump to a nude cowboy in the Big Apple, here are some offbeat highlights from the US presidential campaign trail:
- Trump and his vegetables -
It turns out even the president of the United States has to eat his vegetables. Former White House physician Ronny Jackson revealed to The New York Times he had chefs mix cauliflower in with Trump's mashed potatoes to help him eat a healthier diet and lose weight.
Jackson, who is running for Congress in Texas, said one of his biggest regrets is having left the White House before he could help institute the diet and exercise regime he had planned for Trump, who is said to enjoy fast food.
Teasing for dollars for Warren
One woman who supports Elizabeth Warren raised more than $170,000 by teasing her own 270,000 Twitter followers into making donations.
Charlotte Clymer told them, for instance, that she had been very disappointed with the ending of a TV series she liked, and she would reveal which one if her followers donated $10,000 for Warren (the answer was Lena Dunham's "Girls"). The gimmick netted her nearly three times that much.
She repeated the trick with other lures -- such as details of "bizarre phone conversations" she'd had with a presidential candidate. Now other people are imitating Clymer.
- A bearded Buttigieg -
Photographs of former Indiana mayor Pete Buttigieg with a beard conjured up with a face-tweaking app made the rounds on Twitter and the hashtag #beardedbuttigieg went viral.
An LGBT magazine called "The Advocate" said it was Jim Fall, director of the gay comedy film "Trick," who got it all started by posting the photos on his Facebook page.
They were shared widely and people fashioned others. Some said Buttigieg, 38, looked handsome with the faux facial hair.
- Naked cowboy in New York -
During Tuesday's Democratic debate, media magnate Mike Bloomberg told a joke that flopped. He was asked if he would ban trans fats and sugary drinks from restaurants as part of a drive to fight obesity, echoing the stance he took as mayor of New York.
"Well, I think what's right for New York City isn't necessarily right for all the other cities. Otherwise, you'd have a Naked Cowboy in every city," Bloomberg quipped.
The term started trending on Twitter, and referred to one Robert Burck, a buff 49-year-old who has made a living by playing guitar in his undies, boots and a cowboy hat for decades in Times Square.
Bloomberg's line was a joke that perhaps only New Yorkers would get and Burck is known in any case to be a firm Trump supporter.
