Why the Trump campaign is selling a Latter-day Saints for Trump coffee mug
Why the Trump campaign is selling a Latter-day Saints for Trump coffee mug
Plus: Oh great, here come the negative ads
Hello, in this issue we’ll look at…
Why the Trump campaign is selling a Latter-day Saints for Trump coffee mug
Oh great, here come the negative ads
Scroll to the end to see: what Harris said backstage before her rally at the birthplace of the Republican Party 🔍
Why the Trump campaign is selling a Latter-day Saints for Trump coffee mug
The Word of Wisdom, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ health code, prohibits church members from drinking coffee, something former President Donald Trump’s campaign appeared unaware of when it labeled its $25 “Latter-day Saints for Trump coffee mug” on its online shop.
You’ll find no equivalent merch encouraging people of other faiths to break their religious dietary restrictions on Trump’s site. Instead, the campaign’s Mormon outreach oversight seems to be an error made due to scale. Trump’s LDS coffee mug is actually one of ten demographic-group coffee mugs his campaign now sells.
Judging by presidential campaign merch shops alone, Republicans are the party of identity politics this year. A 56% majority of the items currently on sale in former President Donald Trump’s campaign shop are geared towards specific demographic groups. Compare that to Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign, which sells a single Harris Pride tee and Pride flag sticker two-pack but otherwise has no other demographic-specific gear.
Elections are always exercises in assembling coalitions built across various demographic groups, but in 2024, Trump’s campaign is spelling out explicitly who it needs to reach across shirts, hats, and more.