Trump's Meme Coin Gala: A Night of Disappointments

The event of the year was a black-tie gala held at the Virginia golf club of a former president. The top 220 buyers of his meme coin were invited. The former president flew in on Marine One, a helicopter, and spoke from a lectern that had the presidential seal on it. The White House said it was a private event and that he was there in his personal time. However, this raised some eyebrows among ethics experts. They wondered if he was profiting from his presidency and if people were buying access to his office. The food served at the gala was a big letdown. The menu promised filet mignon and halibut, but what was served looked like it came from a budget airline. One guest said it was the worst food they had ever had at a Trump golf course. Another guest said it was okay, but not top-class. A photo of the food went viral, and people started making fun of it. One person said it looked like it was from the Fyre Festival, which was famous for its bad food and accommodations. The guests were not there for the food, though. They were hoping to meet the former president. However, he only gave a 25-minute speech that barely mentioned cryptocurrency. He said he believed in it and that it had a great future. But that was about it. He did not spend much time at the event or even hand out prizes to the top buyers of his cryptocurrency. The gala was not open to the press, which raised some ethical concerns. The list of the top 220 buyers was not made public, either. One guest said that the overriding memory of the event would be the warm welcome they received as the gala kicked off. However, walking into the dinner was a whole different story. Guests were greeted by a horde of booing protesters who chanted "shame, shame, shame" while holding up signs that read "Stop Crypto Corruption" and "Don the Con. " The meme coin's debut in January has been a big money-maker for the former president's businesses. They have made over $300 million in sales and $43 million in total fees. Since the dinner was announced last month, they have brought in over $3 million in transaction fees alone. One Chinese billionaire, known for his publicity stunts, topped the buyer leaderboard. He has spent more than $20 million on the meme coin. The contest to attend the crypto dinner ran from April 23 to May 12. It was not immediately clear how much the meme coin buyers paid to attend the event. The top 25 on an online leaderboard set up by the Trump-affiliated business to rank their spending hold a total of $140 million in Trump coins. While the top 25 on the list were invited to an ultra-exclusive private VIP reception, it appeared that the president only spent a short amount of time at the event and didn't even stick around to hand out prizes to the top purchasers of his cryptocurrency.