Late-night comedian Stephen Colbert has joined the mockery of Ron DeSantis’ love for cowboy boots - comparing the Florida governor to a child playing dress-up.
Mr Colbert started Thursday’s episode of The Late Show by talking about young kids enjoying Halloween so much that they want to keep their costumes on the following day.
“The next day, you’ll see some of the little ones still in their costumes. Isn’t that great?” Colbert said.
“I saw this cute little fella going around in adorable cowboy boots. What was his name? Governor Ron DeSantis.”
Mr DeSantis’ shoes have been the subject of circulating gags on social media, with some even drawing diagrams to try to crack the case of one of America’s most pressing political questions right now: Is the governor wearing lifts in his boots?
The politician, hoping to win the White House next year, was confronted by this on Patrick Bet-David’s podcast, where he denied the height-boosting speculations.
Ron DeSantis sports some cowboy boots at a Hertiage Foundation talk on Friday— (AP)
“No, no, no, those are just standard, off-the-rack Lucchese,” he said about his Western-inspired kicks, claiming he is 5’11” tall.
Mr Colbert mocked the governor’s alleged lifts seemingly hiding in his boots.
“This is a true scandal. This is the greatest political height scandal since we found out Lincoln wore that [high top] hat to hide his stove pipe forehead.”
The late-night show host referred to some of the US’ top cobblers who believe Mr DeSantis is wearing height-boosting insoles.
In an article by Politico, the cobblers explained how they’ve helped various politicians gain a few inches of height; statistically, taller politicians have won the general election in the last century.
“The theory goes, and follow me down the rabbit hole; you can tell DeSantis is wearing lifts because his foot is too far back in the boot, which makes the toes curl up,” Mr Colbert said.
Ron DeSantis’ boots close-up— (AP)
“Ok, let’s check that. There he is giving a speech. Zoom in on the boots,” Mr Colbert said as a photo of DeSantis appeared on the screen with his toes curling up in his boots.
“Governor, are you wearing lifts, or are your toes just happy to see me?” the host exclaimed.
“Why are you wearing lifts? If you’re wearing cowboy boots, you’re lifted already,” he added before lifting his trousers to reveal a pair of brown cowboy boots.
“It’s ridiculous. I need supplemental oxygen up here.”
While the mystery of Mr DeSantis’s height-enhancing soles has yet to be solved, the governor and his boots hope to become the next Republican candidate in the 2024 presidential primaries.
The question is, can the governor beat out his rival, 6’3” Donald Trump? Does height play a key role in elections, or will Mr Trump’s 91 felony counts across four legal cases level out the playing field?
