What welcome for Donald Trump in Florida?
(Miami) Twitter account deleted, second indictment ... More isolated than ever, Donald Trump will leave Washington for Florida with the hope of finding a little warmer reception among the inhabitants of this sunny state.
Hours before the inauguration of his Democratic successor Joe Biden, the outgoing president will fly early Wednesday to his luxurious club in Mar-a-Lago, where he plans to settle.
Many of her children are also planning to escape from the very democratic American capital, to this southern state, nicknamed the "Sunshine State".
But the reception of the Trump family remains very uncertain.
Last month, residents of Palm Beach, where Donald Trump's club is located, sent a letter to city council reminding them that under an agreement signed in 1993, Mar-a-Lago is not meant to be a residence. main. The Mar-a-Lago club reject these terms of the deal.
And that's probably just the start.
This week, Palm Beach County officials issued a warning to the club about a New Years party in which guests did not wear masks and did not meet social distancing standards.
Trump's son Donald Jr. posted a video of the party showing people dancing to the sound of rapper Vanilla Ice on stage.
The Trumps face a $ 15,000 (CDN $ 19,000) fine for any further violation of pandemic rules at this golf resort.
Solid base
"The Trumps might be surprised to learn that the electoral lists of the three main counties in South Florida - Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade are dominated by the Democrats", also warns Craig Pittman, native of Florida and author of multiples books on the state.
“The elected representative of the constituency where Mar-a-Lago is located, Lois Frankel, has also voted not once, but twice, in favor of the indictment of its most famous citizen”, points out- he with AFP.
But during his four years in office, Donald Trump has nevertheless forged a solid base of supporters in Florida, mostly among rural whites and conservative Latinos.
One of his most loyal supporters is none other than the American Cuban from Miami, Enrique Tarrio. The leader of the far-right militia, the Proud Boys, was arrested in Washington two days before the assault on Capitol Hill, in possession of two high-capacity gun magazines.
The Republican billionaire arouses such passions among some of his supporters that a manatee has been found in a Florida river with the word "Trump" engraved on the skin of the aquatic mammal.
" Toilet paper "
The American press will also have something to eat.
For now, her focus is on Tiffany Trump, the president's fourth child, 27, who, according to the tabloid Page Six, lives in South Beach while she visits homes.
The same newspaper reported last month that Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, an adviser to the president, purchased a $ 30 million (CAN $ 38 million) piece of land to build a residence in Indian Creek Village, a island north of Miami Beach known to be one of the most expensive places in the country.
Donald Trump Jr. and his partner Kimberly Guilfoyle are reportedly looking for a place to settle north of Palm Beach.
All of this raises the question of what the Trumps will do in Florida, and whether they wish to profit from their popularity with a section of the population.
"Maybe once they find a good place to settle down, the Trumps will find other opportunities," says Craig Pittman.
According to several American media, Ivanka Trump is considering running for one of the two senator's seats allocated to Florida, currently held by Marco Rubio. But the vote is not scheduled until November 2022.
Several former presidents have reoriented themselves in the humanitarian after leaving the White House, such as Jimmy Carter or Bill Clinton.
"There are plenty of poor people in Florida who they could help," he said. "But it would have to be more concrete than a few rolls of toilet paper thrown at the crowd," as Donald Trump did to hurricane victims in Puerto Rico in 2017.
