Boos and Cheers As Trump Launches 399 Sneakers Line Day After 355m Fine

Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump has made an unusual stop a day after a judge ordered him to pay nearly $355m in penalties for lying about his wealth and other financial offences.

Trump on Saturday attended an event in Philadelphia that bills itself as the “Greatest Sneaker Show on Earth”, where he introduced the first official Trump-branded footwear: shiny gold high shoes with an American flag on the back and a “T” badge in front, priced at $399.

Amid a mix of cheers and boos at the Sneaker Con, an event popular among kicks and streetwear collectors, the 77-year-old businessman-turned-politician said: “There’s a lot of emotion in this room.”

He held up and showed off a pair of gold shoes and placed one on each side of his podium. “This is something that I’ve been talking about for 12 years, 13 years. And I think it’s going to be a big success.”

The Never Surrender High-Tops, as described on the Get Trump Sneakers website, are being sold along with other Trump-branded shoes and Victory47 cologne and perfume for $99 a bottle.

“They are for go-getters who don’t know the word quit hellip; these kicks are for true Patriot,” read the sneakers’ description.

The website says it has no connection to Trump’s campaign, though Trump campaign officials promoted the appearance in online posts.

The unannounced launch came a day after a judge in New York ordered Trump and his organization to pay a whopping $354.9m in penalties for fraudulently overstating his net worth to dupe lenders.

The fine came after Trump was ordered to pay an additional $83.3m to writer Jean Carroll for damaging her reputation after she accused him of sexual assault.

With interest payments, Trump’s legal debts might now exceed $500m – an amount it is unclear he can afford to pay.

The launch of the sneakers was not the first money-making venture Trump has announced since launching his third campaign for the White House in 2022.

Trump last year reported making between $100,000 and $1m from a series of digital trading cards that portrayed him, through photo editing, in a series of cartoon-like images, including as an astronaut, a cowboy and a superhero.

He has also released books featuring photos of his time in office and letters written to him through the years.

Before he ran for office, Trump hawked everything from steaks to vodka to a venture he called Trump University.

The new sneakers website says it is run by CIC Ventures LLC, a organization that Trump reported owning in his 2023 financial disclosure. The website states the new venture “is not political and has nothing to do with any political campaign”.

Still, it describes the sneakers as a limited-edition, numbered “true collector’s item” that is “Bold, gold, and tough, just like President Trump”.Aljazeera