Drive into Waycross on U.S. 84 just off U.S. 1 and youโll see something unusual: a barbershop dedicated to one of Americaโs most polarizing political figures.
The Trump Barbershop wasnโt always called that, says owner Jesse Gardner, a beefy ex-law enforcement officer who has been cutting hair for 17 years. But after the 2020 election, Gardner decided to exercise his First Amendment rights in the form of a political poke in the eye.ย
He said he got mad at the possibility that the city might take down its Confederate statue. He was staunchly opposed. He said he didnโt want government to start โtelling the American people that our past no longer mattered and the history no longer mattered.โย
He added a logo of Trumpโs blonde swoop over a pair of scissors and a straight razor on the front window of his shop, along with the words โTrump Barbershop: Making Haircuts Great Again.โย
The political statement hasnโt affected his business, he says. In fact, he prides himself on cutting hair from Ware Countyโs Republicans and Democrats alike.
โItโs to help us, to help this young man, to keep his rights and keep it a free country as long as it can,โ Gardner said, as he used an electric razor to buzz around 12-year-old Jordan Beuterโs ears.ย
Retiree Don Hemphill, who says heโs a Democrat but will vote outside his party, was not dissuaded by the Republican candidateโs name on the front window. He gets a $5 senior discount on the regular price of $20-$25 that Gardner charges.
Gardner says the discount is his way of showing respect for seniors in hard economic times. But as he dispenses political view and haircuts, Gardner isnโt as respectful of public servants, especially President Joe Biden, who he demeans as mentally deficient.
โYou know, Lord, most of โemโs retired,โ he said about his clients. โWhen they were setting their nest egg back, they wasnโt counting on this retard that we got running this country. Medicineโs through the roof, everythingโs through the roof. So, and most folks, especially older folks, they want a haircut once a week. They canโt afford it.โ
Gardnerโs biggest concerns this election are the economy and the border. But his views on immigrants are nuanced. โBringing in field workers, I got no problem with that,โ he said. โReally and truly, this country couldnโt survive without them. You donโt want to just open the floodgates.โ Otherwise, he says, farmers would have to โpay double for workers, so it trickles down to me and you.โ
Heโs more than willing to talk politics with Democrats, or anyone who comes into the shop for a haircut. Some Democrats, he says, you can actually debate with.ย
โSome of them, some of them are good people. They really are,โ he said, while adding that they are misinformed.ย
He cited as an example a Black client who told Gardner that he would vote for Kamala Harris, not Trump, because of her skin color. โThatโs the dumbest reason to ever vote for anyone,โ he said.
He also vehemently opposes Harrisโ support for the LGBTQ+ community, especially when it relates to issues about trans identities.
โNow youโre arguing over, you know, tampons in the bathroom and God knows what else, you know, genders.โ he said. โWe work too hard for our money to give it away to somebody for a sex change.โ
At the same time, he acknowledges that Trump is no saint and that some voters are put off by Trumpโs vulgar language.
Trump was convicted of sexually abusing at least one of dozens of women who have publicly accused him of groping or molesting them. But Harrisโ stance on transgender rights and Tim Walz signing a law to provide feminine hygiene products in Minnesota schools, in Gardnerโs view, are worse sins.
โClearly, [Trumpโs] got some issues, and he better ask for forgiveness for some stuff heโs done, but heโs your better option,โ Gardner said. โAt least heโs Christian-based.โ
