You know how contestants on The Bachelor leave the show and inevitably start their new lives as Instagram influencers for Sugar Bear Hair gummies and such?
Well apparently politicians who resign from office become Instagram influencers for tea that looks like urine.
Folks, what we are trying to say here is that Sarah Palin, former Governor of Alaska and Republican vice presidential nominee, is promoting ~brands~ on her Instagram now. This is what 2018 has come to.
On Wednesday, Palin posted an album on Instagram that included several photos of her stanning some sort of skinny loose leaf tea brand called Teami Blends.
She's smiling with the Teami Tea in the Teami Tea tumbler. She's posing with her son and the tea. She's laughing with the Teami Tea. Looks like she's having a blast, TBH! But why on earth is Palin so insistent on showing off her freaking tea? Well it appears she's easing into that sweet, shameless, social media influencer life.
"As a busy ?mom I need all the energy I can get, but coffee makes me crash mid-day and I dread feeling sluggish (and sometimes not so super kid-friendly,)" Palin captioned her tea pics. "After visiting Bristol recently, she raved about the @teamiblends skinny tea that she swears by and has been using forever, so I gave the teas a shot - Amazing!"
She continued to rave about her "new coffee replacement" in another few dozen words, ending the caption with, "No need to add sugar because it’s so good ? You can use code PALIN for 15% off your order! #thankyouteami."
Oy to the vey, Sarah. This is something.
Though the former politician's post looks super influency, CNN noted that influencers are required to disclose relationships with brand if public endorsements are made, per the Federal Trade Commission.
However, Palin's post lacks the usual tip-off hashtags like #ad or #sponsored, so perhaps she's genuinely just super jazzed about this freaking tea and it's a one-time hype post? But including a discount code? Hmm...
"Sarah Palin has been a customer of our brand since 2016. Her and her family all use and love Teami Blends. We are very lucky that she chose to share her Teami experience with her audience," Carly Halvin, social media manager for Teami, told CNN via email, though he didn't comment on whether or not she was paid for the post.
Sarah's daughter, Bristol, who she claims turned her onto the tea, has also posted Instagram photos praising Teami, including discount codes and the hashtag #thankyouteami.
Mashable reached out to Teami for additional comment, but it seems only time will tell if Palin commits to a career in #Graming.