Donald Trump — ranked last in a poll of America’s best presidents — stopped by “Sneaker Con” in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, over the weekend to launch a new range of Trump-branded golden high-top trainers as he closes in on the Republican nomination.
The former US president was met with loud boos as well as cheers at the Philadelphia Convention Center as he unveiled the shoes with a “T” logo and American flag detail, which are being sold as “Never Surrender High-Tops” for $399 on a new website that also sells “Victory47” cologne and perfume for $99 a bottle.
Mr Trump’s latest frantic cash grab came after New York Justice Arthur Engoron delivered a damning verdict in his civil fraud trial on Friday, which saw the GOP’s presidential front-runner, his company and his associates ordered to pay almost $355m in fines — with interest taking the total to $463.9m — and handed a three-year ban on doing business in the state after being found guilty of inflating the value of assets to secure favourable bank loans.
Mr Trump has vowed to appeal.
The episode followed his being ordered to pay another $83.3m to E Jean Carroll in defamation damages last month.