Is this about a personal drive and fire to change the direction of the country once again, or is this about saving face and stroking the ego? When it comes to the motivations of Donald Trump, it’s a legitimate question.

Yesterday, Trump teased a “MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT” – yes, in all caps – that would be dropping today. People were speculating: what could this announcement be about? He’s already announced his candidacy, he wouldn’t pick a running mate this early, would he?

Well, the news landed with not so much of a bang as a thud.

Wait… WHAT?

Thank God, the digital trading cards are here. It was indeed a MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT. pic.twitter.com/T1nsqRwr92

— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) December 15, 2022

Yes, the former president of the United States, and current declared candidate for that same office, is now selling digital NFT trading cards of himself. In different outfits.

Real bottom of the barrel TheDonald stuff pic.twitter.com/eyfzY8sm4T

— Liam Donovan (@LPDonovan) December 15, 2022

I don’t know who in the Trump inner circle thought this was a good idea, but whoever pitched it to him needs their head examined. That Trump himself was onboard with doing something like this is no shock. It’s literally selling his image for $99 each. And somewhere out there, people will buy it. There’s nothing like making a quick buck with only a few minutes’ worth of work on Photoshop. Which leads to the next question: is Trump really serious about wanting to be president again? He learned during his term that being president has a lot of fancy trappings, but it is very difficult to actually get things accomplished. It wasn’t like being a rich person, where you could throw money at a problem and watch other people sort it out for you. Being president of the United States requires diplomacy (sometimes with truly awful world leaders) and compromise (sometimes even within your own party). When Trump delegated tasks to truly competent people, great things happened (the prime example being the Abraham Accords). When tasks were given to not-competent-people, or people with a political agenda (like Anthony Fauci), then really horrible things happened. Being the president meant that Trump had to be responsible for both the good and the bad on his watch. No president likes taking the blame, ever, but it comes as part of the job.

And Trump never liked taking the heat. He loved all the pomp and circumstance of being president, but not the nitty-gritty work and details. And to be fair, it’s rare to have a president who does, especially in modern times, as Congress shirks more of its legislative responsibilities and the executive branch gets more powerful and more bloated with the bureaucracy. But we aren’t supposed to be electing a monarch for a four year term – we’re supposed to be electing a president. And it is a fair question to ask if Trump really wants that for himself, or for the country? And if this is more about himself than the country, will he bow out if it looks like he’s losing?

On Tuesday, The Hill reported a USA Today-Suffolk University poll showing DeSantis walloping Trump, 56 percent to 33 percent, among Republican and leaning GOP primary voters in a hypothetical match-up. Also, only 31 percent of Republican primary voters favor a Trump run.”

Then on Wednesday, a Wall Street Journal poll showed DeSantis defeating Trump 52 percent to 38 percent. These and other polls make headlines and generate sustained media attention, eroding Trump’s standing as the inevitable front-runner.”

Thus, the average politician would ask, “Is the universe telling me to disband my campaign?” Except Trump is not average. “I’m a victim, I will tell you. I’m a victim,” he said in his presidential announcement speech. Even more, he is a “victim” of self-inflicted wounds. But do Americans want to elect “a victim” as their next president?”

Looking ahead to 2023, what if Trump is indicted by the Justice Department (more likely every day) and the 2024 GOP nomination polls continue to boldly favor DeSantis? While Trump fears losing, what course of action is available to him before the primaries begin? Surely not a traditional campaign withdrawal speech.”

Instead, Trump could play the poor health card and withdraw, a plausible excuse after he turns 77 in June. That way, Trump saves face by not being called a “loser” — only a victim of bodily maladies beyond his control.”

Then imagine his predictable social media message: “I was winning the nomination and would have won the general election, but my doctor says I am at risk for (fill in the blank) and must end my campaign.”

There are a lot of competing factors at play right now when it comes to Donald Trump. There is no doubt that he wants to be revenged on those in the Deep State who are still targeting him. If he is indicted and loses, he will blame the indictment and the legal process for unfairly handicapping him in a primary. He could plead health issues, but so long as Joe Biden stays in the race, a health contrast works in Donald Trump’s favor. He could bow out due to age or family reasons, but again, that seems unlikely if Joe Biden is running. But it can be safely assumed that Donald Trump would rather bow out on his own terms than lose the primary race for the nomination all on his own.

But stuff like selling digital NFT trading cards of himself, while very on-brand for Donald Trump, is not on-brand for a presidential contender. So what is going on here?

He's selling $99 NFTs.

This isn't a serious campaign. It's a person who is trying to amass as much cash as possible before the gravy train ends two years from now. https://t.co/yMox6rl2T4

— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) December 15, 2022

At this point, who knows? Donald Trump is anything but predictable, but you can always assume that he will spin events to his best advantage. And if it is to his advantage to drop out and not lose, he will probably do that. But again, it is so, so, SO early in the 2024 race, and literally anything can and will happen in the next 20 months.

Featured image: original Victory Girls art by Darleen Click