With ‘VICTORY 45-47’, the grift is complete.
Donald Trump has sold off just about everything that matters: abortion rights, public education, environmental protections, civil service standards, even the basic premise of non-partisan governance.
And now there’s only one thing left to flog – himself.
Taking to his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump wrote on Tuesday: ‘Trump Fragrances are here… Enjoy, have fun, and keep winning!’
Sprayed with cheap bravado, christened ‘VICTORY 45-47’ (in reference to him being the 45th and 47th president), and slapped with a $199 (£144) price tag – or $249 (£180) for the version topped with a man in a suit wrapped in tacky gold – this latest venture is the most literal expression yet of what his politics have become: an expensive joke.
But this isn’t a sideshow or even a side hustle. It is the main show.
With no vision beyond revenge and no plan to govern, Trump’s second term has been one long liquidation sale fuelled by resentment, celebrity, and now, cologne.
So, let’s take a look at what else has been sold off in the opening months of his second term.
The Education Department – whose largest programme reached over 21million low-income or disadvantaged students in more than 56,000 schools – has been gutted.
Before the department existed, more than half of children with disabilities in the US were not receiving ‘appropriate educational services’ from public (or as we’d say, state) school. That progress is gone.
Of course, initiatives focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion? Slashed.
Biden’s plans for student debt relief? Dead on arrival.
The Environmental Protection Agency is hanging on by a thread.
Meanwhile, fossil fuels are back in fashion, with new licences fast-tracked for oil drilling on federal land. Environmental impact reviews have been scrapped and electric vehicle infrastructure has been suspended.
Tens of thousands of civil servants have been fired without notice and replaced with MAGA loyalists.
Foreign aid aimed at stabilising democracies or tackling poverty and hunger? Forget about it.
Ukraine? Good luck. Palestine? Luxury Trump resort coming soon.
Not even law and order is safe. Federal prosecutors and FBI officials who previously investigated Trump or refuse to bow to his petty demands have been forced out.
Thousands of violent rioters – including members of the ultra-right Proud Boys, designated a terrorist organisation by neighbouring Canada, and the Oath Keepers, who were convicted or charged over the US Capitol insurrection – have been released.
And of course, women’s rights have simply been collateral damage. As of 2023, over 24million women lived in states with restricted or banned abortion care.
Federal funding has been pulled from clinics that even mention abortion. The global gag rule has been reimposed, blocking international aid to providers who offer or discuss reproductive healthcare.
So with all that underway, you’d be forgiven for scoffing at the idea that Trump’s $249 bottle of fumes for women is described as expressing ‘confidence, beauty, and unstoppable determination’. What this actually smells like is anyone’s guess.
Meanwhile, the men’s version promises to capture those ‘who lead with strength, confidence, and purpose’. (Dr Freud’s ideas about the male preoccupation with size and strength may be of particular interest to the President.)
Unsurprisingly, questions of ethics have been raised, arguing that this is a blatant abuse of office. But who’s listening?
Anyway, the fine print disclaimer at the bottom of the website states that the new fragrances are ‘not designed, manufactured, distributed or sold by Donald J. Trump’, is ‘not political’ and has ‘nothing to do with any political campaign’ – so it’s fine, right?
This is the playbook now. Blur the line between campaign and personal gain. Turn the presidency into a platform for product placement. Treat every constitutional protection as an inconvenience.
From steaks to NFTs, gold high-top trainers to Bibles, everything is sold not in spite of his office – but because of it.
With everything else sold off – justice, oversight, public infrastructure, international credibility, and the last pretence of impartial governance – there’s only one thing left to sell: himself.
In case you missed the point: the grift is complete. The President is the product. The White House is the shopfront.
All that’s left is to slap one hell of a warning label on it.
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