EXCLUSIVE Trump group ridicules Ron DeSantis with early Christmas present of Puerto Rican flag boots – complete with chunky heels
The super PAC backing Donald Trump is targeting Republican rival Ron DeSantis with an early Christmas gift.
It is sending him a $99 pair of handmade boots, decorated with the red, white and blue of the Puerto Rican flag, as part of its campaign accusing him of supporting statehood for the island – while the voters are reminded of his penchant for heeled boots.
The pinnacle of fashion, you could say.
“America knows Ron DeSantis loves boots (with lifts in them) and a Puerto Rican state, so we couldn’t think of a better early Christmas gift to the governor than a pair of Puerto Rican flag boots,” said Karoline Leavitt, spokeswoman for Make America Great Again Inc.
“We are willing to provide the shoes as a ‘loan’ so that the governor can bypass Florida’s donation laws and accept the shoes as he accepted a golf simulator from a wealthy donor.”
The handmade Puerto Rico flag boots are currently marked down to $99.75 at Grizz Shopping
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ shoes have been in the news this week, amid claims from expert shoemakers that he looks like he’s using elevators, despite the governor’s denials
Earlier this year, it emerged that an expensive golf simulator had been installed in the Florida governor’s mansion not as a gift from a wealthy donor, but as what the DeSantis office called an “indefinite loan.”
The bold footwear is the latest sign that Trump supporters are changing their strategy.
After weeks of attacking President Joe Biden, his likely Democratic opponent in the 2024 election, they have turned their fire on DeSantis, who is currently in second place in the Republican race.
They see an opportunity to end his challenge forever as former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley tries to overtake him.
This week, the super PAC launched an attack ad in Iowa, where DeSantis is concentrating its resources and portraying him as too liberal for voters in the state.
“Liberals have a plan to make Puerto Rico a state by adding two Democrats to the Senate, and Ron DeSantis sided with the liberals’ power play,” the ad says.
“Ron DeSantis sponsored the bill to make Puerto Rico a state.”
Republicans tend to oppose Puerto Rico’s status, which they believe would help Democrats by giving them additional members of Congress.
But as a member of the House of Representatives, DeSantis was among a number of members of Congress who co-sponsored the Puerto Rico Statehood Admission Act of 2018, which laid out a path to creating a 51st state.
MAGA Inc purchased the boots well before Christmas and sent them to the Florida governor’s mansion
It never advanced beyond the committee stage, although the issue played well with Hispanic voters when DeSantis ran for governor.
Still, Trump supporters have returned to the theme as they try to end his campaign.
For their part, DeSantis’ team said it was a sign of vulnerability for Trump.
“After months of touting that they had already won the race, Team Trump is now being forced to publicly admit that Ron DeSantis is climbing the ranks in Iowa and poses a serious threat to their chances of securing the nomination.” , campaign spokesman Andrew Romeo said. .
“At a time when Israelis and Americans continue to be held hostage by Hamas, while millions of Americans suffer from high inflation, and when our southern border continues to be invaded, Team Trump has inexplicably decided to launch false and hypocritical attacks on Ron DeSantis. ..about Puerto Rico.’
DeSantis also found himself on the defensive this week amid claims that the Florida governor uses lifts in his boots to increase his height.
A trio of expert cobblers said they believed they were using shoes to boost his standing with voters, despite his repeated denials.
A trio of expert cobblers believe Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is wearing heels, despite the 2024 candidate denying there are lifts in his cowboy boots. DeSantis wore these boots Friday at a Heritage Foundation event
Boot maker Zephan Parker of the Houston-based Parker Boot Company said Politics magazine: ‘I have often had to deal with these politicians. I helped them with their lifts. (DeSantis) carries lifts; there is no doubt.’
He looked at photos of DeSantis at a campaign event in Tampa and noted that while the boots resembled a traditional Western silhouette, the heels appeared to be shorter.
Putting lifts in regular cowboy boots, he added, could exaggerate the overall impact by turning them into “five-inch stilettos.”
“That’s too much for the common man,” Parker said. “So on an off-the-shelf boot, the heel is shortened about half an inch to accommodate the lifts, which seems to have happened here.”
The DeSantis campaign didn’t like the analysis.
Spokesman Bryan Griffin said, “The governor isn’t filling his boots, but if he ever needs something to line a pet cage or fold up and wedge under a table leg, that would be the highest and best use for Politico Magazine are.’