The bright-red MAGA hat was the must-have item for Trump supporters in 2016. In 2020, it might be replaced by a bright-red face mask.
According to The Wall Street Journal, President Trump’s reelection campaign has placed an order for “red, Trump-branded face masks for supporters.” The paper says, “Campaign officials have discussed giving away the masks at events or in return for donations.”
The WSJ links the production of the masks to a broader attempt by the Trump campaign to win back waning support from seniors, a stronghold for the president that has begun to abandon him amid his shaky leadership during the coronavirus outbreak. Along with selling the masks, the campaign is planning a TV blitz and several events focused on older voters:
The campaign on Sunday will start airing a TV ad aimed at showing Mr. Trump as a strong leader during the pandemic. The seven-figure buy will run for about a week. The campaign expected to ramp up its attacks on Mr. Biden after that, a campaign official said …
Meanwhile, the White House is planning a series of public events aimed at appealing to seniors, “a huge focus in the months ahead,” one official said.
It was only a matter of time before official MAGA masks arrived on the faces of Trump’s biggest fans (they’re already for sale from non-campaign sources.). Face masks are becoming a near-ubiquitous part of the COVID-19 world, and people are increasingly demanding some say in how masks look. For some people, that means a mask covered by an NBA logo or a Marvel superhero.
Just this week, Tim Andrews, president of the trade group Advertising Specialty Institute, told New York that it was only a matter of time until face masks become “important promotional items for political groups and campaigns.” That time has arrived.
