November 16, 2017
Red or Blue? Political Gifts for the Holidays
Leanne Italie READ TIME: 3 MIN.
He says MAGA. She says covfefe. This year has been all about politics, so why not roll with that come holiday gift time?
Some ideas for your red and blue staters:
THE CAPS
Because who doesn't love a good baseball-style cap? President Donald Trump's Make America Great Again (MAGA) hashtag is plentiful on caps, including actual red ones. So are caps reading "covfefe," that word in a sentence fragment Trump tweeted out just after midnight on May 31 that went like this: "Despite the constant negative press covfefe."
Thousands of memes and tweets followed, including one from the tweeter-in-chief himself five hours later: "Who can figure out the true meaning of "covfefe" ??? Enjoy!"
Anywhere from $9 to $36.
THE BOOKS
Books are gifty, for readers anyway. Two might be of interest to your red and blue staters:
- "What Happened," Hillary Clinton herself breaks it down. What, exactly, the Democratic nominee was thinking and feeling during one of the most raucous presidential elections in history, $17.99.
- "Hacks: The Inside Story of the Break-ins and Breakdowns that Put Donald Trump in the White House," by Donna Brazile. The former interim Democratic National Committee chair offers her high-volume take on what went wrong for the party as she teetered on the verge of yanking Clinton as the nominee eight weeks before Election Day, $28.
THE MERCH
The possibilities here are as endless as the election cycle felt.
Holiday tree ornaments, T-shirts, mugs - the usual, but what about a sweet shout-out for Bernie Sanders and his home state of Vermont with a nice container of maple syrup?
On the Trump side, those infamous steaks might be hard to track down, but Trump wine from the vineyard of the same name can be purchased online.
And to please your Clinton admirers: a white pantsuit, vintage poster or book featuring suffragettes.
THE MUSIC
Shop the playlists of the year's political players, but does Trump listen to music?
Back during the campaign, candidate Trump told The New York Times he was fond of the 1969 Peggy Lee hit "Is that All There Is?" Written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller of Elvis, "Hound Dog" and "Jailhouse Rock" fame, the song ticks off a series of letdowns, from a house fire to a circus that apparently wasn't up to snuff to love lost, with a chorus that goes like this:
"Is that all there is?
Is that all there is?
If that's all there is my friends, then let's keep dancing
Let's break out the booze and have a ball
If that's all there is"
In the alternative, how about a good polka from Slovenia?
For blue staters: President Barack Obama represents. Back in August 2015, the Obama White House hopped onto Spotify and served up Barack's handpicked summer playlists, one for day and one for night. They're killer.
His top five for sunlight: "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" by The Temptations; "Live It Up" by The Isley Brothers; "Memories Live" by Talib Kweli and Hi Tek; "Tombstone Blues" by Bob Dylan; and "So Much Trouble in the World" by Bob Marley.
After-hours at the top: "My Favorite Things" by John Coltrane; "Superpower (feat. Frank Ocean)" by Beyonce; "Moondance" by Van Morrison; "Is Your Love Big Enough?" by Lianne La Havas; and "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" by Al Green.
As for Clinton, she's a Bey fan, telling Rolling Stone back in February 2016: "I want to be as good a president as Beyonce is a performer."
Sanders, meanwhile, is a big music fan who's all over the map, from Beethoven to Willie Nelson.
STILL STUMPED?
Just buy a crate of the Vladimir Pootin Lavatory Mist from a company called Blue Q, for a spritz or two of light jasmine and red tea. Yes, red. Prices vary. Get 'em while they're hot.
