Sterling, Virginia – It was an evening that defied comprehension. A political ritual that did not present itself as such – and yet contained all the symptoms of power obsession and economic self-empowerment. At Trump National Golf Club, just half an hour from Washington, around 220 people gathered on May 22, 2025, who had bought their proximity to the president with digital coins. $TRUMP, a meme coin without purpose or substance – except for one: access.
Outside, the rain was pouring. Inside, people laughed, applauded, filet mignon was served. While the wealthy checked in, protesters stood at the entrance holding signs like “Stop Crypto Corruption,” “No Kings,” and “America is not for sale.” Senator Jeff Merkley lost his voice shouting, “This is the Mount Everest of corruption.”
Trump spoke of common sense in the crypto world. Of the need to change everything. “The last administration made your lives hell,” he said, and the room erupted in cheers. He promised nothing less than a state-sanctioned revolution of speculative capital – flanked by a seal that once stood for the integrity of a republic.
Among the guests: Justin Sun, a Chinese crypto billionaire who secured the top spot on the invitation list by spending $40 million on $TRUMP coins. Korean and Taiwanese investors had also traveled – not out of conviction, but in expectation of deregulation. Their business models are global, only the approval is missing: America. And Trump.
What took place here was not a campaign. It was not fundraising. It was monetization in its purest form. The president promoting his own currency. His family profiting from transaction fees. A business model that appears as democracy – and yet is nothing but transaction.
A company founded specifically for this purpose, called "Fight, Fight, Fight," organized the event. The top buyers were to dine with the president. The top 25 were initially promised a VIP White House tour – later deleted, once it became clear that government institutions would not go along.
The difference from earlier scandals? This one is no scandal. It is method. A system in which proximity to power becomes purchasable, no longer through lobbies, but through wallets. A system that does not privatize the state, but personalizes it.
And perhaps that is the most disturbing part: how many are willing to pay for it.
Outside in the rain, the chants of shame remained. And inside, between lukewarm promises and lukewarm fish, the future was being traded – with every coin a little further away from the public good.
It was not the dollar that was at stake that evening. It was the weight of the office that became play money. And with it – democracy.
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