Donald Trump is facing criticism after promoting $399 sneakers a day after a court ordered him to pay $355 million in fraud fines.
The former president, 77, showed off three different pairs of shoes while attending Sneaker Con at the Philadelphia Convention Center in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
“I wanted to do this for a long time. I have some amazing people working with me on stuff and they came up with this. It’s something I’ve been talking about for 12, 13 years, and I think it’s going to be a huge success,” Trump said, according to a video shared online.
Amidst his comments, the politician was met with boos from those attending the event, which describes itself as “The World’s Biggest Sneaker Show.”
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Donald Trump at Sneaker Con in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on February 17.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty
Donald Trump ordered to pay $355 million, banned from doing business in New York as punishment for fraud
Among the items Trump promoted were shoes known as the “T-Red Wave” and the “POTUS 45,” both of which cost $199 and feature a “T” and the number 45 on the side.
A pair of gold footwear billed as the “Never Surrender High Top Sneaker,” which similarly features a “T” on each shoe, meanwhile, was priced at $399 and is currently sold out.
Buying a pair of sneakers — which are not affiliated with Trump’s presidential campaign or the Trump Organization, as his name, image and likeness are licensed by CIC Ventures LLC — comes with extra laces and Trump’s “superhero charm.” the website also sells “Victory47” perfume and cologne for $99.
In a statement obtained by PEOPLE, Biden-Harris 2024 communications director Michael Tyler reacted to Trump’s promotional appearance over the weekend, saying, “Donald Trump’s appearance in bootleg Off-Whites is the closest any Air Force Ones will ever come to an end. life.”
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Donald Trump sits in court on April 4, 2023.
Andrew Kelly-Pool/Getty
Trump’s appearance at Sneaker Con came a day after he was ordered Friday to pay $354.9 million in fines following a lengthy civil fraud trial.
In the 92-page ruling, handed down by Judge Arthur Engoron, Trump is barred from serving as an officer or director of any New York corporation or legal entity for three years. It also restricted him and the Trump Organization from applying for loans from New York-authorized financial institutions during the same time frame.
The trial served to determine Trump’s sentence after Engoron ruled in September 2023 that the former reality star committed fraud while building his real estate empire.
The ruling comes just three weeks after a New York jury ordered Trump to pay $83.3 million in damages to former Ella columnist E. Jean Carroll for defamatory statements he made about her in 2019.
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Donald Trump attends a fraud trial on January 11 in New York.
Shannon Stapleton-Pool/Getty
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Since leaving office in 2021, Trump has been embroiled in several legal issues and investigations on various fronts, including his political conduct and business dealings.
Four of those investigations led to indictments, including the first, which made him the only US president to face criminal charges.
The next two, meanwhile, further distinguished him as the only president to face federal charges.
Trump — who hopes to return to the White House in 2025 — is doing well among Republican voters and appears to be the front-runner for the party’s presidential nomination in July.
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Source: HIS Education