It's certainly no secret that Trump is a bully, a mean-spirited louse who extracts a goodly portion of the little joy he ekes out of life by humiliating others. Sometimes the humiliation is passive, as in the nauseating Cabinet meetings where his minions shamelessly fall all over themselves to praise Dear Leader - performances that wouldn't be out of place at a table headed by Vladimir Putin, Kim Jon Un, or Idi Amin.
(Decades ago, I saw a documentary on Amin that featured a meeting of his underlings. There was also a scene in which Amin "won" a swimming race in which he walked across the waist-high part of a swimming pool using his arms to mimic taking strokes. When he got to the pool's edge, he looked up at the camera grinning and declared "I won." Sounds a lot like all those golf tournaments - and peace prizes - that Trump brags about.)
One of Trump's latest forays into the wonderful world of underling humiliation was gifting shoes to his Cabinet members and expecting them to wear them. Even if, because Trump ordered whatever sizes he thought would be best, the shoes don't fit.
The shoes that were the biggest misfits seemed to be those of the feet of Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Whatever size Lil Marco - a pet name bestowed by Trump during the 2016 Republican primary season - wears in real life, it's apparently not the "big shoes to fill" Trump gave him.
“Trump has been buying $145 Florsheim dress shoes for allies, using the gifts as a lighthearted way to encourage loyalty and unity within his circle,” posted media X account Clash Report, citing The Times as a source. (Source: MSN)
These are the same shiny black dress shoes that Trump himself wears.
It's certainly no surprise that Trump favors shoes made in China (or somewhere non-US-y). But it's a bit shocking that his shoe of choice is from Florsheim, a rather pedestrian brand. (On a side note, my father wore Florsheim's - black or brown wingtips. He sometimes converted old ones to golf shoes by having spikes put on them.)
After all, Trump is fabulously wealthy, with his wealth having increased over the past year - the first year of his second presidency - by a cool $1.4B. Surely, he could afford whatever shoes he wants. So why not look into Allen Edmonds? Sure, they're more than double the price of Florsheim's, but they're actually made in the US of A. Or he could have a bespoke cobbler hand make him his shoes.
Of course, what he probably really wants is to be carried around on a sedan chair while wearing dem golden slippers.
Given that Trump's notoriously cheap when it comes to reaching into his own pocket, perhaps he just didn't want to spend a lot of gifts for his cabinet. At the same time, he didn't want them to think he was gifting them second best by giving them shoes that he himself doesn't wear. (On second thought, there's no reason to believe the cost of the shoes was personally borne by Trump.)
“All the boys have them,” said one unnamed White House official, while another told the WSJ, “It’s hysterical because everybody’s afraid not to wear them.”
“Recipients have taken to wearing their Florsheims around Trump, some apparently begrudgingly,” the WSJ reported. “One cabinet secretary has grumbled that he had to shelve his Louis Vuittons, according to people who heard the complaint.”
As you can see in the photo of Marco sporting his new Florsheim's, they appear to be too big by about half an inch. Not quite clown shoes, but not exactly comfy. And what a win for Trump that Rubio has been "ruthlessly mocked" for clomping around in them. Social media. Late night comedians. Marco Rubio, ha, ha, ha.
Who among us hasn't worn (at least once, in the gift-givers presence) something we're not wild about - the color, the cut - because it was given to us by someone we cared aout. But that ain't what's happening here.
Nope. Ain't no one wearing those shoes out of fondness for their boss. And to think that no one has the guts to say, "Thanks for the nifty gift, boss, but I'd like to exchange them for something that fits." Because that would be suggesting that Trump had made a mistake, gotten something wrong. Talk about that ain't happening. Not with King Infallible on the throne.
Others who have been beneficiaries of Trump's shoe largesse include Cabinet members Pete Hegseth, Howard Lutnick, and Sean Duffy. (No word on whether Scott Bessent was on the gift list, but I can't see that insufferable imperious snob voluntarily wearing Florsheim's.) Which means it would be delicious if Trump decided to do it. Steven Cheung, Lindsey Graham, and Sean Hannity have also been giftees.
In terms of everything else Trump is doing to destroy the country and the world, forcing someone to wear unwanted, ill-fitting shoes is pretty small potatoes. But it does provide us with yet another example of Trump's rancid personality.
Meanwhile, I can draw some comfort from learning that Florsheim's parent company, Weyco, is suing Trump over tariffs.
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