Trump’s major announcement was more deserved than expected

[ad_1]

Donald Trump raised eyebrows yesterday morning with an item published on his social media platform. AMERICA NEEDS A SUPERHERO! wrote the former president. I will make a MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT tomorrow. Thank you!

Much speculation soon followed. The Republican may have secured an important endorsement for his 2024 campaign. He may have something to say about his next running mate. Perhaps the couple has finally seen the health care plan she spent years promising to reveal.

As it turns out, that is difficult to predict. The Daily Beast reported:

Former President Donald Trumps MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT came on Thursday like the release of a new NFT because it is the release of a new NFT. After teasing the previous day on his social media site that he would have big news, Trump shared with Truth Social that he will be releasing a set of collectible digital trading cards all featuring himself.

It may seem hard to believe, but the former president has launched the sale of non-fungible tokens, which he calls the official Donald Trump Digital Trading Card collection. According to the Republicans’ announcement, the photos feature amazing ART of his Life & Career, although that’s not entirely true: Many of the photos actually feature his face superimposed over images of men tied to muscle doing things Trump has never done.

For just $99 each, Trump added, you can buy all your favorite Trump Digital Trading Cards, which are like a baseball card, but hopefully more exciting.

Unconcerned by the fact that his pitch seemed huckster-like, the former president concluded, Would make a great Christmas gift. Don’t Wait. They will disappear, I believe, very quickly!

This may seem like a scheme to generate money for his presidential campaign. Nope. As the website that sells the NFTs makes clear, none of the money will go to his political operation or even the Trump Organization. Instead, it’s money Trump is collecting himself as part of a private licensing deal he struck with an outside company along the lines of his Trump Steaks deal.

Coincidentally, the company’s website features a two-minute promotional video in which the former president gives Trump Digital Trading Cards a hard sell. This is about as ridiculous as it sounds.

There is no shortage of questions, starting with some obvious ones. Who convinced Trump that this was a good idea? Can he feel shame? Does he realize that the market for NFTs has fallen dramatically? Is he aware of the fact that he has earned a reputation as a rude cheater, and it only makes him worse?

But as interesting as those lines of questioning are, I have another question that isn’t entirely rhetorical: Is Trump still a presidential candidate?

Sure, I saw the former president kick off a 2024 campaign exactly a month ago today, but there are things that candidates for nations tend to do, and Trump isn’t doing any of them.

Since launching an apparent comeback bid, he has not hosted any public events. He did not visit any states with early nominating contests. He never sat for interviews with any major news organization. As far as anyone can tell, he hasn’t hired a campaign manager.

That said, Trump dined with some of the nation’s most prominent antisemitic voices, called for an end to constitutional restrictions in pursuit of bonkers election conspiracy theories, found that his prized family business was has been convicted of several felonies, and as of this afternoon, people are being asked to purchase the official Donald Trump Digital Trading Card collection.

The Republican race has featured plenty of scary moments. It is among the most embarrassing.

Related:

Steve Benen is a producer for “The Rachel Maddow Show,” the editor of MaddowBlog and an MSNBC political contributor. He is also the best-selling author of “The Impostors: How Republicans Quit Governing and Seized American Politics.”

[ad_2]