President Donald Trump greeted reporters on Air Force One by holding up a $5 million "gold card" immigrant visa.
The card included the president's image emblazoned across the front.
"For $5 million, this could be yours," Trump told reporters Thursday as he held up the pocket-sized item in his left hand. "That was the first of the cards."
"You know what that card is? The Trump card. Gold card."
When a reporter asked who was the card's first buyer, Trump replied, "Me."
The reporter quickly asked him to identify the card's second buyer. "I don't know," the president said, "but I'm the first buyer."
After a few seconds he added, "Anyone want to buy one?"
In February, Trump announced plans for the government to offer a new "gold card" — a new visa program for high-worth foreign investors who want to move to the U.S. It's designed to be a replacement for the current EB-5 visa.
At the time, Trump said the plan will help entice wealthy investors from around the globe to take advantage of a system that will help the U.S. grow with new investments from high-worth immigrants.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Thursday that a quarter-million people are "waiting in line" to get a "gold card" visa application.
On board Air Force One, Trump said the "gold card" will be available "in about less than two weeks."
Trump showed off the card a day after he declared a 10% baseline tax on imports from all countries and higher tariff rates on dozens of nations that run trade surpluses with the United States, threatening to upend much of the architecture of the global economy and, critics say, risking broader trade wars.
The new "gold card" program could mark a dramatic shift in U.S. immigration policy but isn't unprecedented elsewhere. Countries in Europe and elsewhere offer what have become known as "golden visas" that allow participants to pay in order to secure immigration status in desirable places.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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