When Donald Trump shared that he was about to make a “major announcement” Tuesday morning on his social media platform, Truth Social, speculation centered around a possible presidential campaign-related announcement amid dwindling support for the former president.
Come Wednesday morning, Trump announced an “Official Donald Trump Digital Trading Card Collection” in NFT form.
“Collect all your favorite Trump digital trading cards, like baseball cards, but hopefully more exciting,” Trump said on Truth Social. “Only $99 each!”
What are NFTs and what is a collection of trumps?
NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are digital assets that are tied to their owner. Through cryptography and clever programming tricks, each NFT is unique and, in turn, has its own value, which is usually determined by demand from potential buyers.
As of Friday morning, the website from which you can buy the NFTs says the collection is sold out. The site says that 45,000 NFTs were created, of which 44,000 were available for purchase for $99 each. The NFTs now sell for as little as $200 on the NFT exchange site OpenSea.
What is NFT?: Here’s how it works, what to know about the NFT market and future value.
Opinion: Trump’s Trading Cards Got Us Thinking: Is It Sad? disappoint? Or time to be selfless?
“Better than Lincoln, better than Washington,” Trump said of his presidency in a video announcement of the NFT collection. “These cards have really incredible artwork related to my life and my career, it’s so exciting.”
The digital trading cards depict Trump in various different outfits and extravagant settings. One NFT depicts Trump shooting laser beams out of his eyes in front of Trump Tower, while another shows Trump making fists while riding an elephant.
Trump said, ‘Remember, Christmas is coming and this is a great Christmas gift.
Trump’s support decline
Trump’s announcement sparked speculation that it was related to his 2024 re-election bid. Trump among Republican allies and supporters alike has seen his support for dismal midterm results for the GOP and dining with Holocaust deniers.
An exclusive USA Today/Suffolk University poll found that only 31% of GOP and GOP-leaning voters wanted to see Trump run for re-election.
When it came to a different presidential candidate, the poll found those voters preferred Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over Trump by 56% to 33%.
related: These charts show how Trump’s 2024 bid is losing steam
announcement mocks
Trump’s announcement drew criticism and derision from both his frequent opponents and allies, especially after the collapse of FTX, a major cryptocurrency exchange, drew intense scrutiny.
FTX founder arrested in the Bahamas: How the alleged Sam Bankman-Fried scheme was exposed
President Joe Biden mocked Trump and tweeted my own “Major Announcements” the latest of his administration’s successes such as codifying same-sex marriage into law.
Former White House strategist and Trump advisor Steve Bannon responded to the announcement on his “War Room” podcast, saying, “I can’t do it. I can’t do it anymore.”
“Anybody, what business partner, and anybody on the comms team, and anybody at Mar-a-Lago, and I love the people there, but we’re at war. They should be fired today,” Bannon said. needed.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump’s NFT trading card collection draws ridicule, sells out
