Trump token jumps 10% as criticism of Thursday night's memecoin dinner intensifies
Whether you love him or hate him for it, the media storm gathered ahead of President Donald Trump holding a dinner for top holders of his official memecoin appears to be spurring the token higher.
Hours before over 200 of
TRUMP +3.96%
memecoin holders sit down to dine with the president Thursday evening, the token was changing hands at $15.45, an increase of 10%, as of 3:35 p.m. ET, according to The Block's price data. That's the highest price for the token in about four weeks.
While TRUMP's price is on the upswing, considerations of whether the president has crossed a line by rewarding holders of his memecoin with a dinner show no sign of slowing down.
Trump's allies have said the president can't be bought while his press secretary stated on Thursday the Commander in Chief would be attending the dinner "in his personal time" when asked about who would be attending. Many have been curious to know who exactly earned the right to attend the memecoin dinner while reports have said in all likelihood the majority of top TRUMP holders are not U.S. citizens.
Top holders like Tron founder Justin Sun, Kronos Research CIO Vincent Liu, and BitMart founder Sheldon Zia appear to have all publicly displayed enthusiasm for being invited to the dinner.
"This is a personal dinner that the president is attending on his personal time," a White House official told CBS. "The [White House] has absolutely nothing to do with it. There will be no WH tours for any winners of the memecoin contest."
Unsurprisingly, Trump's detractors, including several Democratic lawmakers, have openly blasted the president for his memecoin, which launched in January and now has a market cap of over $3 billion. Even Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis, a supporter of the president and a crypto-friendly lawmaker, has said the dinner gives her "pause."$BTC
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