The US President showed off his new visa on Air Force One. The $5 million card features his face, his name and the huge price tag splashed over. Trump also bizarrely claimed he was the first person to buy the residency permit
Donald Trump has unveiled his new self-titled “gold card” visa that will set the world’s elite back an eye-watering $5 million. The US President showed off his bizarre latest card – donned with a self portrait, his signature and the huge price tag splashed across – while aboard Air Force One on Thursday.
The Republican announced his controversial plans to allow VIP foreigners, who want to create jobs, to pay their way into the US on the visa he dubbed the “green-card-privileges-plus”. The Commander-in-chief gloated about his glorified millionaire and billionaires residents permit saying: “It’s the gold card – the Trump card.”
He showed off the weird design for his visa, with half the card taken up by a picture of himself. The President also included “The Trump Card” title and image of the Statue of Liberty bizarrely peering behind him.
Trump sensationally announced the surprise move in February and it could be ready to rollout in as little as two weeks. The bizarre visa even came with Trump’s odd claim that he was the first person to buy the VIP card, admitting he was unsure who the second person would be.
The US President said: “I don’t know, but I’m the first buyer. It’ll be out in … less than two weeks. Pretty exciting, right?” The businessman even tried to flog some of the $5 million visas asking: “Anybody want to buy one?”
Despite this, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick claimed last month that 1,000 cards had already been sold, “raising $5 billion in a single day”. Lutnick also slammed the pre-existing EB-5 programme, which allows big investors the chance to apply for permanent US residency, labelling it “full of nonsense, make-believe and fraud”.
Lutnick claimed there was a 250,000 long line for the EB-5 visa and claimed the new “Trump Card” would help pour money into the government. He said: “200,000 of these gold green cards [at $5 million] is $1 trillion to pay down our debt.”
Trump revealed, in February, that people “of wealth or people of great talent” would qualify for his visa. He didn’t specify extra measures applicants would need to meet but said it would bring “wonderful, world-class global citizens” to the US.
This VIP foreigner fast lane comes as Trump unleashed brutal mass deportations against alleged gang members and illegal immigrants. His administration wrongfully sent a man to one of El Salvador’s most brutal and notorious prisons – and now says they can’t get him back.
Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia has protected immigration status in the US but was deported due to an administrative error. ICE admitted its mistake but Garcia’s family are now suing the government. They are demanding the US bar payments to El Salvador for his detention and seek his return.
