Trump's "major announcement" of NFT collection draws ridicule but sells out

When Donald Trump shared he was to make a “MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT” on his social media platform, Truth Social on Tuesday morning, speculation centered around a potential 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 the form of NFTs.

“Collect all of your favorite Trump Digital Trading Cards, very much like a baseball card, but hopefully much more exciting,” Trump said on Truth Social. “Only $99 each!”

What are NFTs and what is Trump’s collection?

NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are digital assets that are tied to its owner. Through cryptocurrency technology and clever programming tricks, each NFT is unique and in turn, has its own value, usually determined by its demand from prospective buyers.

As of Friday morning, the website where you could buy the NFTs says the collection is sold out. The site says that 45,000 NFTs were created, 44,000 of which were available for purchase for $99 each. The NFTs now sell for at least around $200 on OpenSea, an NFT exchange site.

What is an 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? Desperate? Or a 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 feature some of the really incredible artwork pertaining to my life and my career, it’s been very exciting.”

The digital trading cards depict Trump in various different outfits and extravagant settings. One NFT features Trump shooting laser beams out his eyes in front of Trump tower while another has Trump fist pumping while riding an elephant.

“Remember, Christmas is coming and this makes a great Christmas gift,” Trump said.

Eroding support for Trump

Trump’s announcement tease stirred speculation that it was related to his 2024 reelection bid. Trump has seen his support slide among Republican allies and supporters alike for disappointing midterm results for the GOP and dining with a Holocaust denier.

An exclusive USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll found that only 31% of GOP and GOP-leaning voters wanted to see Trump run for reelection.

When it came to a different presidential  nominee, the poll found that those voters vastly prefer Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over Trump at 56% to 33%.

Related: These charts show how Trump's 2024 bid is losing steam

Announcement draws ridicule

Trump’s announcement has drawn criticism and ridicule from both his frequent opponents and allies especially after the collapse of FTX, a major cryptocurrency exchange, has drawn intense scrutiny.

FTX founder arrested in Bahamas: How Sam Bankman-Fried's alleged scheme unraveled

President Joe Biden mocked Trump and tweeted his own “MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENTS” touting his administration's latest string of successes such as codifying same-sex marriage into law.

Former White House strategist and counselor to Trump, Steve Bannon, reacted to the announcement on his “War Room” podcast, saying “I can’t do this. I can’t do this anymore.”

“Whoever, what business partner, and anybody in the comms team, and anybody at Mar-a-Lago, and I love the folks down there, but we’re at war. They ought to be fired today,” Bannon said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's NFT trading card collection draws ridicule, sells out