'Never Surrender': Trump Turns Prison Mugshot Into Campaign Material, Uses Photo In Merchandise
Donald Trump's campaign has included products such as T-shirts, coffee mugs, stickers and beverage coolers, with his prison mugshots imprinted on them, and a tagline reading “NEVER SURRENDER”.
New Delhi: After Donald Trump was arrested on charges of election racketeering and conspiracy, the campaign for the former US President saw an opportunity to cash in on his prison mugshots and sought to turn a badge of dishonour into a political weapon, news agency AFP reported. A new line of mugshots, inspired by his photo taken at the Atlanta jail, was released to the public and has become his 2024 campaign symbol.
His campaign has included products such as T-shirts, coffee mugs, stickers and beverage coolers, with Trump’s prison mugshots imprinted on them, and a tagline reading “NEVER SURRENDER”.
The mugshots bear the image of the 77-year-old former US President, with his head tilted slightly down and eyes glowering into the camera. While some saw it as a frown and others saw a death stare, the mugshot plays into Trump’s narrative of a defiant, heroic victim, AFP reported.
The image shows Donald Trump dressed in a dark blue suit, white shirt and red tie against a grey backdrop.
Trump shared his mugshot photo with date: August 24, 2023, and wrote, "Election Interference, Never Surrender."
"This mugshot will forever go down in history as a symbol of America's defiance of tyranny," a fundraising email sent by the campaign, asking supporters to pledge USD 47 in return for a T-shirt with his image, according to the news agency.
"As a marketer, this is his genius -- that he can reclaim whatever is said, or whatever is accused, or whatever imagery is created, and turn it into something which stands for the story he wants to tell," the CEO of a marketing consultancy, Interbrand North America, told AFP.
As per the report, some of Trump’s most prominent backers are also weaponising the image.
"Not all heroes wear capes," Congresswoman Lauren Boebert posted on X, formerly Twitter.
"This is the photo that will win the 2024 Presidential election,” far-right representative Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted.
US President Joe Biden himself finally offered his thoughts on Friday, saying, “I did see it on television. Handsome guy,” reported AFP.
Trump Leads Ron DeSantis By 40 Percentage Points In Republican Prez Nomination Race: Report
Donald Trump leads Ron DeSantis by nearly 40 percentage points in the presidential nomination race for the Republican party even after declining to debate the Florida governor and other rivals, according to a poll survey conducted by news agency Reuters.
As per the survey, DeSantis stood in distant second with 13 percent with the support of Republican respondents while Trump, the former president, bagged 52% percent points.
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