A giant “Trump 2016” signs stands prominently above a quiet café in the Midway District.
Inside, the mementos paying homage to the presumptive GOP presidential candidate abound. Trump pictures. Trump stickers. Trump banners. Even a Trump piñata.
The Hancock Street Café is as much an expression as it is a business in the 3300 block of Hancock Street, sandwiched between a strip club and a marijuana dispensary.
Owner Mario Waclawski put the giant Trump sign above his café last year, making no mistake which candidate he’s voting for, even though it could be polarizing for his business.
“This is not easy to do this,” Waclawski said. “He’s got everything. He’s got money, friends, everything. Now he’s risking life for me, so I said, ‘Wait a minute. Let me risk my life too and now we’re even.’”
From the piñata to the countless pictures of the man trying to become America’s 45th president, Waclawski will talk politics and he really loves it when people disagree.
Do all his decorations hurt business? It’s tough to tell.
U.S. & World
News from around the country and around the globe
One customer, Robert Witcher, hangs out there often and, without divulging his vote, said he’d like to see a woman as president.
“I’m a bigger fan of the owner than I am of Trump,” he said.
Unfortunately, not all patrons are as diplomatic.
“We’ve had people come by and yell ‘FU,’” Waclawski said.
The café owner said he welcomes the difference in opinion.
“Meeting people is the best thing you can have in your life. Our difference brings us together,” he said.
The truth is Waclawski would rather tell you about this three kids, the artwork on his floor retracing the time he walked across America to raise money for cancer - or his wife who died of it -- prompting him to move to San Diego 14 years ago to start a business.
"Those people, they want you to fight back," he said. "I said, 'No. Forgiveness and love is the power.'"
