“There's a lot of emotion in this room,” Trump said of the reaction, after he held up a pair of gold shoes and flaunted them, then placed one on either side of his podium.
“This is something I've been talking about for 12 years, 13 years. I think it's going to be a huge success,” he said.
As he spoke, the smell of herbs occasionally wafted into the room.
Some attendees said they were not aware Trump was there, and continued to shop while a crowd gathered around the stage. Many attendees said they were not from the city, instead coming from neighboring states and Washington, D.C.
The attendees were younger and more diverse than Trump's usual crowds. His campaign hopes he can win over more young and minority voters, especially young Black men, in a potential rematch against President Joe Biden in November.
“The Never Surrender sneakers are protest in shoe form,” the description says. “Lace up your boots and come out ready to conquer.”
A Trump spokesman did not respond to questions about the event, including whether Trump was paid to attend.
Trump was met with boos and cheers at the event.
credit: AP
Among those in attendance were Trump supporters Jonathan Santiago, 21, and Dania Mitchell, 20. They said they were excited to see the former president and praised how he interacted with the audience. They also had kind words for the sneakers.
“The red bottoms were a really nice touch,” Mitchell said.
She shrugged when asked about Trump's legal problems. “I think four years will be interesting if he is found guilty, but I have no doubt that he will become president,” she said.
Also in attendance was a group of “cheer moms” from New Jersey who said they were in town for a cheerleading event and decided to stop by for a chance to see Trump.
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Biden-Harris 2024 communications director Michael Tyler criticized the appearance, saying: “Donald Trump appearing in front of the Off-Whites is the closest he will get to stepping on any Air Force plane again for the rest of his life.”
Trump traveled from Philadelphia to Michigan, where he held a rally in suburban Detroit and opposed Friday's ruling, which he vowed to appeal. Pennsylvania and Michigan are expected to be crucial battleground states.
Trump later criticized a New York judge who ruled that he must pay $354.9 million in fines for fraudulently inflating his net worth to deceive lenders, telling thousands of supporters at a campaign rally that the decision was a “ruse to interfere in the election.”
Addressing supporters for the first time since Judge Arthur Engoron imposed massive financial sanctions on him, Trump made a baseless claim that the judge was part of a left-wing conspiracy aimed at preventing him from becoming president again.
“These disgusting abuses of power are not just an attack on me, they are an attack on all Americans,” the former Republican president, the front-runner for his party's nomination for the White House, told a crowd in Michigan.
AP, Reuters
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