Well, well, well, what do we have here? Former US President, Donald Trump, AKA once one of the world’s most powerful people, has revealed that the “major announcement” he has been teasing is a series of Donal Trump “digital trading cards.”
That’s right, Trump is now flogging NFTs with little videos of him as, say, a superhero with laser eyes, or an astronaut wearing Aviator sunglasses. There’s also one of him as a cowboy and another of Trump as a racecar driver. I wish this was a joke, but I’m kind of thrilled it isn’t.
The “rare digital collectible” images depict the kind of fever dream a 10-year-old boy might have if he’d been locked in a room his entire life and made to watch endless hours of 80s American action movies while force-fed a diet of McDonald’s and dressed entirely in American flag clothing.
“These cards feature some of the really incredible artwork pertaining to my life and my career,” Trump said in a video on Truth Social announcing the NFTs.
“Each card comes with an automatic chance to win amazing prizes like dinner with me. I don’t know if that’s an amazing prize but it’s what we have. Or golf with you and a group fo your friends at one of my beautiful golf courses. And they are beautiful,” he explained.
Trump also introduced himself in the video as “hopefully your favourite President. Better than Lincoln, better than Washington.”
The NFTs themselves cost USD$99 or around $149 Australian and have to be stored in a crypto wallet like other NFTs. Interestingly, Trump has previously scorned cryptocurrencies, writing on Twitter in 2019 that he is “not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies.”
“Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity,” he wrote.
The internet has responded exactly as you would expect it to about the announcement.
“Just when you thought this grifter couldn’t humiliate himself any more than he already has, there’s this,” CIA whistleblower and author John Kiriakou wrote. Below is a selection of some of the best Twitter had to offer.
Yesterday, former US President and failed Putschist Donald Trump told his social media followers to expect a MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT. Today, he has announced his own range of NFTs, in one of the most hilariously shit videos I have ever seen: pic.twitter.com/RkLT7ziypJ
— Oz Katerji (@OzKaterji) December 15, 2022
Donald Trump major announcement is that he’s selling his own Pokémon cards 😭
— Santiago Mayer (@santiagomayer_) December 15, 2022
Donald Trump’s “major announcement” appears to be that he still thinks people will give him $99 when he asks.
— Ginger Gibson (@GingerGibson) December 15, 2022
this is somehow hilariously dumber than even I had expected https://t.co/oRX89KWQTf
— Sarah Rumpf 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@rumpfshaker) December 15, 2022
You can’t make this up. Donald Trump’s “major announcement” are digital trading cards that cost $99 each. Classic grifter and narcissist behavior. He has truly lost his mind more than I can possibly imagine. DOJ & Jack Smith, please hurry up and indict this man.
— Victor Shi (@Victorshi2020) December 15, 2022
Even Trump’s long-time collaborator, Steve Bannon, said, “I can’t do this anymore” in response to the cards, advising that anyone involved in advising the venture “oughta be fired today.”
Trump’s entry into the crypto space also comes at a questionable time, given that crypto assets have taken a plunge in terms of value over the last few months. FTX, one of the biggest crypto trading platforms, collapsed recently, dragging much of the market down with it. Since the war in Ukraine broke out, Bitcoin has been on a downward slope, hitting multi-year lows at present.
Perhaps it’s less questionable now, however, as Trump has been hit by waves of legal costs for tax evasion and other crimes. His company, the Trump Organization, was fined USD$1.6 million just last week, and Trump himself has recently been fined USD$4000 for contempt of court.
Buying a Trump NFT will enter you into a sweepstake, with prizes like meeting Trump, attending a cocktail party at his Mar-a-Lago residence, or a free dinner at Trump Towers in New York. In total, there are set to be 45,000 of these NFTs minted, with some having more ‘rarity’ than others.
The artwork was created by Clark Mitchell, a California-based digital artist who has previously created work for Disney, Hasbro, and Coca-Cola, as well as NFTs for celebrities and athletes.
According to the Collect Trump Cards website’s NFT license agreement, it appears that anyone purchasing these cards is buying ownership rights of the “token” or digital address on the Polygon blockchain that the NFT is minted to, but not the rights to the NFT or the artwork itself.
“Purchaser shall have only a limited license to the individual layered files, traits, and digital works associated,” the agreement reads. Essentially, the NFTs can’t be traded as a digital file, only as access to the address with a digital file in it. This isn’t uncommon in the NFT space, but it does limit their appeal as investor items, one of the main reasons why people buy NFTs, as the site expressly restricts users from selling the NFT. The token can however be sold.
Some online have suggested that this may be more of a “data grab” than a genuine attempt at selling NFTs as access to payment can’t even be made on the site without inputting your personal information.
“It’s not just that he’s stupid, it’s that he is also very aware of just how stupid his supporters are,” freelance journalist Oz Katerji has written.
So, if there’s someone in your life you truly have no interest in ever speaking to again, why not get them a Trump NFT? As Trump himself states: “Christmas is coming and this makes a great Christmas gift.”
Disclaimer: Please don’t actually buy a Trump NFT, even as a joke. Do not give money to this man.
Related: She Doesn’t Even Go Here: Gina Rinehart Supporting Trump’s 2024 Presidential Run
Related: Want to Know How We Got to Jan 6? ‘Trump Unprecedented’ Explains All
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