On a recent Monday afternoon, inside the Tiffany & Co shop on Fifth Avenue in New York City, Michelle Harper tried on engagement rings with her fiancé Richard. They came all the way from Lake County, Indiana, to make the special purchase at the jeweller’s popular flagship store in Manhattan.
"This is my grand, romantic Breakfast at Tiffany's moment, a trip that we have been planning for a year," mused Harper, 26, as she walked out of the store holding onto Richard, but sans ring.
“Our big moment has been ruined by that devil,” she explained.
She was referring to the man who lives 600 feet above Tiffany: Donald Trump, who will take office as the 45th President of the United States of America on January 20. The Tiffany boutique is located on the ground floor of Trump Tower, the skyscraper that houses 38 floors of residences, 13 of commercial offices, seven of retail space and three penthouse floors that serve as Trump’s residence.
Harper, who voted for Hillary Clinton during the US presidential election, had always fantasised about getting engaged at Tiffany’s New York branch since she was a teenager. But she has now decided to make the purchase at the jeweller’s store back in Indiana. “I’m not going to allow that monster to taint the memory of such an important occasion in my life,” she said, walking out onto Fifth Avenue and past multiple security checkpoints on the block.
For many New York residents, Trump has not only spoiled a romantic dream, he has disrupted their daily routine. As security measures are ramped up in the area surrounding Trump Tower, traffic has clogged in Midtown Manhattan. Police officers roam the sidewalks with a phalanx of bomb-sniffing dogs. Pedestrians are regularly stopped and questioned, and their bags searched. Heavy-weapons teams are stationed nearby.
"It looks like a war zone out there," New York City council member Dan Garodnick recently told the press, lamenting that the security arrangements have intimidated shoppers and caused a drop in sales for retailers in the area. While Tiffany declined to tell The National its sales figures since Trump's election, business owners have told Garodnick they have taken a 30 per cent hit in profits in recent weeks. Most clerks and the security guards at nearby stores Louis Vuitton, Armani and Bulgari told The National they were ordered not to talk to the press about matters concerning Trump.
During his year-long campaign for the presidency that took him across the US, Trump flew back to New York on his private jet almost every day so he could sleep in his own bed in Trump Tower. Since winning the election, the building’s 26th floor has served as the office of the forthcoming government, where he has been hosting meetings with dignitaries and interviewing potential members of his cabinet. The US press has dubbed Trump Tower “White House North”.
Upon taking office on January 20, it remains unclear how much time Trump will actually spend in the White House in Washington. According to multiple reports, he has told his advisers that he would like to spend time in New York as much as he can. His wife Melania is apparently adamant about remaining in Trump Tower, at least until their 10-year-old son, Barron, finishes his current school year in New York.
The situation has been a source of annoyance for many New Yorkers who live and work in Midtown Manhattan, a high-density neighbourhood home to hundreds of retail stores, hotels, restaurants and corporate offices, and criss-crossed by multiple train and bus routes. Arthur, a 24-year-old cashier at the Abercrombie & Fitch store located across the street from Trump Tower, said he and his co-workers have had to come to work earlier than usual to take into account the traffic and security checkpoints that they have to go through to get to work.
He has also noticed a significant drop in foot traffic inside the store. “What increased are the number of protesters,” he said, pointing to a crowd of anti-Trump demonstrators standing outside Abercrombie & Fitch. “They often come inside when it gets cold out. They don’t even pretend to shop, they just hang around here, chatting. It’s very irritating.”
Liliana Martinez, 34, was one of about 60 people protesting that afternoon. She held a sign that read “Not My President”. Martinez, a housewife who volunteered for Democractic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders during the primaries, said: “The secret to getting a spot here is, when the police ask you what you’re doing in Fifth Avenue, just tell them you’re shopping. ‘I’m going to Tiffany, officer. I’m going to Gucci’, and they’ll let you through with no questions.” Martinez hails from Queens, the New York City borough where Trump was also born and raised. “And I am ashamed about that fact,” she said. “Queens has disowned him. New York has disowned him.”
Martinez, whose family moved to the US from Mexico when she was a child, said she was protesting against Trump’s stances, particularly on immigration, minorities and health care. “He believes in many things that I find despicable. I am here to practise my rights and show the world that no, most of us Americans do not support this disturbing orange man-child.”
Trump may have won the electoral vote, but Clinton won the popular vote by three million more ballots. In Manhattan, Clinton received 86.3 per cent of the votes, compared withTrump’s 9.8 per cent. Martinez protested for three hours before having to fetch her two children from school.
Inside Trump Tower, the mood towards its landlord was predictably more positive. In the marble lobby, about a dozen people pottered around a boutique selling Trump merchandise, including a cologne named Success (on sale at 60 per cent off) and “Make America Great Again” hats, which are a bestseller.
Several camera-wielding gawkers took selfies by the entrance, where the word TRUMP is written in big, bold gold lettering. A handful of reporters and cameramen lingered by the elevators, craning their necks to spot a VIP, a Trump aide or adviser, or even Trump himself.
At Trump Grill, a steakhouse in the lobby, all tables were occupied for lunch by what looked like a mix of tourists and businessmen. They dined on cheeseburgers, steaks, calamari and a dish called "Ivanka's Salad" (named after Trump's daughter), a version of a Greek salad. "The allure of Trump's restaurant, like the candidate, is that it seems like a cheap version of rich," wrote Vanity Fair magazine in a review last month headlined "Trump Grill Could Be the Worst Restaurant in America".
A server at Trump Grill, who declined to be identified because he was not authorised to speak to the media about his employer, said business has boomed at the steakhouse since Trump’s win. “It’s a great time to be working here, in terms of tips,” he said. “Plus you get to see all the politicians.”
Last month, New York City mayor Bill de Blasio formally asked the US government to reimburse the city for the cost of providing security for a man who prefers to live in his glass tower. The cost is estimated to reach US$35 million (Dh128.5m) by Trump’s inauguration next week, or about $500,000 per day. In his letter to Congress, De Blasio called the round-the-clock security operation “profoundly challenging”.
Despite the congestion, street closures and protests, De Blasio, a Democrat, says New York will soldier on, preparing for the prospect that the new president will be a regular presence in the city during his four-year term.
“I will not tell you that Gucci and Tiffany are my central concerns in life, but I will say the traffic situation is a very real problem,” De Blasio said in a news conference in front of Trump Tower. “We are devoted to making sure the city will keep moving.”
James Gabrillo is a former arts editor at The National and a regular contributor to The Review.