In March 2026, social media users turned their attention to the shoes worn by various male members of the administration of U.S President Donald Trump. According to many popular posts (archived), Trump "has been buying $145 Florsheim dress shoes for allies in his inner circle, and people are reportedly 'afraid not to wear them.'"
The post included a photo of Trump and members of his administration wearing matching black dress shoes and another photo that zoomed in on what were apparently Secretary of State Marco Rubio's shoes, which were large enough for there to be a gap between the heel of Rubio's foot and the heel of the shoe. The post claimed Trump ordered the pair for Rubio "by just guessing his size" and noted they looked too big.
The claim that Trump gave Rubio shoes that didn't fit him spread on Reddit (archived), X (archived) and Facebook (archived). The claim that Trump generally gave Cabinet members shoes that didn't fit spread on X (archived) and Facebook (archived).
The claims were based on a Wall Street Journal report on Trump's fondness for a particular shoe that he often gives as gifts to people in his orbit, as well as a news photo in which a gap between the heel of Rubio's foot and the heel of his shoe could be seen.
Since we are unable to confirm the claims with primary sourcing and are unable to determine whether the Rubio shoes that appeared too large were indeed shoes given to him by Trump, we have not rated this claim.
Snopes reached out to the White House and the Department of State for confirmation on the claims and will update this story if we receive a reply.
Trump's shoe 'obsession' and gifts
On March 9, 2026, The Wall Street Journal published an article titled "Trump Is Obsessed With These $145 Shoes—and Won't Let Anyone Leave Without a Pair." According to the WSJ, Trump began wearing Florsheim shoes in 2025 after searching for a more comfortable shoe. He wound up liking them so much that he started giving people Florsheim leather oxfords, many of which were $145 at the time of the report.
At the top of the article was a Jan. 21, 2026, Getty Images photo of Trump wearing a pair of shiny, black leather dress shoes while sitting next to several people in his administration, including four of his Cabinet members. The four Cabinet members all wear matching shoes of the same appearance. Rubio is one of the Cabinet members wearing the shoes in that photo.
Florsheim does have $145 all-black oxfords that look similar to the shoes Trump and his Cabinet wear.
On Dec. 5, 2025, conservative influencer and podcaster Benny Johnson posted a video to X (archived) of Vice President JD Vance at a Kennedy Center event sharing an anecdote aligning with the WSJ's subsequent reporting. In the clip, Vance said that earlier in the day Trump insulted his and Rubio's shoes during a meeting and proceeded to ask each of them their shoe sizes so he could order them new shoes.
WSJ: Officials are 'afraid not to wear them'
In his anecdote, Vance said Trump asked him and Rubio for their shoe sizes before buying the shoes, but The Wall Street Journal made no mention of Trump asking for sizes before buying shoes.
According to the WSJ, Trump guesses people's shoe sizes directly in front of them. While the Journal did not directly state that Trump buys the shoes based on his guesses, the line about Trump's guesses was a part of the same paragraph describing how Trump buys and distributes the shoes:
The president has taken to guessing people's shoe size in front of them. He asks an aide to put in an order and, a week later, a brown Florsheim box arrives at the White House. Trump sometimes signs the box or attaches a note of gratitude, according to people familiar with the ritual.
Based on the WSJ's reporting, it's possible that Trump guesses people's shoe sizes and tells his aide to put in an order based on the size he guessed. It's also possible that Trump guesses people's shoe sizes and then asks them if he's correct or gives them a chance to correct him before he buys his shoes.
If Vance's anecdote was true, Trump at least asked Rubio for his shoe size before making the order and Rubio told him it was an 11.5.
The WSJ's reporting was also the origin of claims that Trump administration officials are "afraid" to not wear the shoes Trump has given them:
"All the boys have them," said a female White House official. Another joked, "It's hysterical because everybody's afraid not to wear them." The shoe-salesman-in-chief is paying attention.
Photos seem to support that officials named in the WSJ article have been wearing them. For example, there is a Getty Images photo of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick wearing shoes on Feb. 19, 2026, that appeared to be the ones given by Trump. A March 6 Getty Images photo shows Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in what appeared to be the same shoes. Vance appears to wear the same shoes in a March 9 Getty Images photo.
Rubio's oversize shoes
Social media users mocked Rubio's shoes after people began sharing a cropped Getty Images photo in which a visible gap could be seen between the heel of Rubio's right foot and the heel of his shoe.
Searches through Getty's photo archive and Google Images did not reveal any photos with a gap in Rubio's right shoe as pronounced and clearly visible as the one in the widely shared photo. However, there are some other Getty photos where Rubio's shoes appear as if they could be too large.
For example, there are at least two photos in Getty's archive from early 2026 in which the heel of Rubio's right shoe appears to extend beyond Rubio's right foot and/or pants leg. In both photos, Rubio is wearing a shoe that looks similar to the Florsheims.
There are also Getty photos from that same timeframe where Rubio's shoes appear to fit fine.
Vance said in his previously referenced anecdote that Trump ordered him four pairs of shoes and that he thought the president did the same for Rubio. It could be possible that some of the pairs are the right size while others are too large. It could also be that different photos make the same shoes appear larger or smaller based on the angle of the photograph and how Rubio's foot was positioned.
In sum …
Without the White House's or Department of State's confirmation, we can't independently confirm whether details of the Wall Street Journal story are true, nor can we confirm that Rubio has been wearing shoes that don't fit him because they were a gift from Trump.
However, the WSJ's reporting largely aligns with the anecdote Vance told months earlier about Trump giving him and Rubio new shoes. There are also photos of Vance, Rubio and other members of Trump's cabinet wearing shoes that appear to be identical to Trump's.