The battle between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton is playing out in Cleveland’s public square, where enterprising Americans are hawking provocative, and sometimes highly offensive, political paraphernalia.
One man is doing brisk business selling “Hillary for Prison” hats, buttons and T-shirts.
Others are offering apparel that references Monica Lewinsky. One T-shirt shows Trump racing toward the Whitehouse on a chopper bike, with Clinton falling off the back.
One vendor, who was sporting a stars and stripes stovetop hat Thursday, is finding plenty of takers for his “Stop Trump Save America” buttons.
He said he’s worried about the “climate” he sees Trump creating. “We see a resurgence of Jim Crowism,” he said. “We see a resurgence of black versus white, brown versus black.”
An artist is there selling prints of his pro-Trump paintings, including one featuring a Mexican border wall so big it appears visible from space. A huge bald eagle soars overhead.
“There’s people coming into the home over the back wall and they shouldn’t be coming into our home,” the artist said. “Come in through the door.”
Red ball caps with Trump’s famous “Make America Great Again” slogan are also popular. They’re selling at a price of one for $20 or two for $30.
Among those taking in the spectacle Thursday was Brexit-proponent Nigel Farage, who told CTV’s Chief News Anchor Lisa LaFlamme he’s there to explain how his U.K. Independence party “overturned the establishment.”
“There's a lot of news agencies and politicians in America that want to know how did we do it, and is it relevant to what's happening here in November?” Farage said.
LaFlamme asked about the comparisons to the Republican’s nominee.
“Donald Trump doesn’t drink, doesn't smoke and he's worth a lot of money,” Farage said. “So on those three counts, we're completely different.”
