Former President Donald Trump unveiled Thursday what he previously presented as a “major announcement.” Many Americans thought he was going to share his 2024 running mate or announce other presidential campaign news. However, Trump announced he was beginning a new business venture—selling digital trading cards depicting himself as various characters such as a superhero, cowboy and an astronaut. The non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which cost $99, sold out in hours after being widely mocked on social media.
Despite the NFTs, Mary Trump criticized her uncle’s announcement in a Thursday episode of The Mary Trump Show on YouTube.
“It’s clearly a scam,” she said. “Please don’t buy them.”
NFTs have risen as a new cyber currency in the past few years and are identified as a cross between cryptocurrency and art. Last year, an expert wrote in Newsweek that the digital art form seemed to be a new trend for political fundraising, but according to Trump’s digital trading card website, the cards aren’t political and profits from the cards won’t benefit Trump’s presidential campaign.
Earlier in Thursday’s episode, Mary Trump, who has widely criticized her uncle and wrote a memoir on the Trump family, said the topic of NFTs was “totally” beyond her “capacity to understand.”
“It’s very confusing. I just don’t know if it was particularly well thought through,” she added about her uncle’s new business venture.
In addition, the former president’s niece said she was shocked by the NFT announcement and thought Trump was going to announce his own political party or that he would be running as an independent in the 2024 presidential election instead.
Mary Trump said she first found out about the announcement on Twitter and thought it was a joke. However, when she learned it was real, she tweeted: “omfg” followed up by “Alternatively: wtaf” to show her aghast reaction.
Then, she tweeted an edited version of a NFT trading card showing her uncle in a superhero outfit with lasers shooting out of his eyes. However, the edited version replaces Trump’s face with that of Darth, a popular anonymous Twitter account pretending to be a red panda.
Later in the episode, Mary Trump disparaged the people within the former president’s inner circle who signed off on the NFTs. She wasn’t the first to criticize his team, with many on social media saying whoever advised Trump to pursue the new endeavor should be fired or exiled.
Newsweek reached out to the Trump Organization for comment.
