Former President Trump’s “God Bless America” bibles are actually manufactured in China — and sold at a huge markup.
A company tied to the Republican candidate paid a firm based in Hangzhou, China to produce 120,000 copies of the holy books at a cost of about $3 each.
Trump is hawking the bibles, emblazoned with his name and “God Bless the USA” on the cover, for a whopping $60 a pop, a profit of nearly $7 million. A few of the bibles that Trump has signed by hand are going for $1,000.
The China connection could be politically embarrassing for Trump, who has made harsh anti-China rhetoric a cornerstone of his campaign against Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.
Trump has called for huge tariffs on Chinese-made products, a move he says would protect American jobs but most economists contend would raise prices for consumers.
Trump’s previous administration exempted bibles and other religious texts from tariffs imposed on billions of dollars of Chinese-made goods.
The largest and most recent load of 70,000 Trump-branded bibles arrived by container vessel at the Port of Los Angeles on March 28, two days after Trump announced in a video posted on his social media site that he was partnering with country singer Lee Greenwood to sell them.
Along with the Holy Scriputure, the Trump Bible includes copies of the U.S. Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights and Pledge of Allegiance.
“This Bible is a reminder that the biggest thing we have to bring back in America, and to make America great again, is our religion, Trump said. Judeo-Christian values, he added, are “under attack, perhaps as never before.”
A special edition of the $59.99 Trump Bible memorializes the July 13 assassination attempt on the former president at a rally in western Pennsylvania. Trump’s name is on the cover above the phrase, “The Day God Intervened.” The wording appears to have been stamped on after the Bible was produced.
Trump said Saturday at a rally commemorating the attack that the assassination attempt failed “by the hand of providence and the grace of God.”
With News Wire Services
