In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, former President Donald Trump promised that a "major announcement" would be forthcoming.
Yet rather than making an important political decision, Trump instead revealed that he had created a line of superhero-themed digital trading cards. Some conservatives have regarded that move as a slap in the face.
Among the objectors was RedState contributor Bonchie. In an article published on Thursday, he demanded to know what member of Trump's team "thought this was a good idea and how much are they getting paid for it?"
"There’s no way Trump came up with this himself if for no other reason than him not being technically savvy enough (try explaining NFTs to your grandfather)," the writer insisted.
"This was the work of someone in his orbit looking to make a quick buck," Bonchie wrote before adding, "Still, when Trump puts his name on something, he’s responsible for it, and this feels a bit much."
"Serious presidential campaigns that want to help their party don’t introduce grifting NFT scams meant to deprive dementia-ridden old ladies of their cash," the author insisted, adding, "I mean, I thought the Save America PAC’s fundraising tactics were bad, but holy cow, this is next level."
Fox News noted that other conservative figures were left shaking their heads over Trump's announcement, with podcast host Ben Shapiro tweeting, "Thank God, the digital trading cards are here. It was indeed a MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT."
Thank God, the digital trading cards are here. It was indeed a MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT. pic.twitter.com/T1nsqRwr92
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) December 15, 2022
Alyssa Farah Griffin is a one-time aide to Trump who has since become one of his most vocal critics, and she spoke up as well.
In a tweet, Griffin unfavorably compared Trump's superhero trading card announcement with how Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has operated on social media.
The juxtaposition is *chefs kiss* pic.twitter.com/hcNEA7NKdV
— Alyssa Farah Griffin (@Alyssafarah) December 15, 2022
According to New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, Trump has long wanted to "be seen as Superman," and even considered putting on a Superman shirt after recovering from COVID in 2020.
"Trump wanted to be wheeled out of Walter Reed in a Superman shirt under his actual shirt," Haberman alleged in a tweet on Thursday.
"Aides talked him out of it (and then Meadows devoted several lines in his book to claiming it hadn’t happened)," she continued, adding, "So instead he does it virtually and tries to make money off it."
