Trump's social media post triggered a brief price rally for the Solana-based token, reigniting debate over mixing politics and digital assets

President Donald Trump publicly endorsed his official meme coin on a Truth Social post last Sunday morning.

President Donald Trump’s brief mention of his namesake meme coin in a Truth Social post on Sunday morning sparked a brief price rally for the Solana-based token and renewed discussion of mixing politics and digital assets.

“I LOVE $TRUMP—SO COOL!!! The Greatest of them all!” Trump posted to his 9.3 million followers.

The post, made around 9:30 am ET, saw the $TRUMP token quickly surge by 10% to hit $12.17, following a rebound from its 24-hour low of $10.75, as trading volumes also shot up to levels last seen in early March, according to CoinGecko.

The token is currently down more than 84% from its all-time high of $73.40, reached shortly after its launch on January 17.

The memecoin market is largely in a downturn, with major coins such as Dogecoin and Shiba Inu seeing their prices drop significantly and trading volumes decline by 26% and 13%, respectively, in the last month.

President's endorsement sparks ethical concerns

The president's endorsement of the token has drawn criticism from legal experts, especially due to the token’s ownership structure.

Trump-affiliated entities—including CIC Digital LLC and Fight Fight Fight LLC—hold around 80% of the total $TRUMP token supply, according to project documentation mentioned on the official website.

Andrew Rossow, a digital media lawyer and CEO of AR Media’s global brand impact consulting firm, told Decrypt that the promotion raised several concerns.

"This sets a dangerous precedent for leveraging public office for personal financial gain," he said.

He added that Trump's involvement "undermines regulatory agencies such as the SEC and CFTC, eroding trust in impartial governance".

He went on to list three constitutional concerns: possible violations of the Emoluments Clause, failure to uphold regulatory duties under Article II, and unequal market treatment in violation of the Fifth Amendment.

"Foreign actors can anonymously purchase these tokens, raising serious national security implications," he said.

Lawmakers introduce MEME Act amid growing scrutiny

In February, House Democrats unveiled the MEME Act, legislation that would prevent federal officials and their families from profiting from meme coin activity.

Rep. Sam Liccardo, who spearheaded the bill, accused the Trump family of "financially exploiting the public for personal gain".

"The Trumps' issuance of meme coins raises the specter of insider trading and foreign influence over the Executive Branch," Liccardo wrote in a blog post on February 27, announcing the measure.

The $TRUMP token, launched in January with an initial supply of 200 million, plans to scale to 1 billion tokens over three years.

At its peak, it reached over $14.5 billion in market cap before plummeting in the weeks following the inauguration.

Luis Buenaventura, head of crypto at digital payments platform GCash, said that the price action reflects waning interest in the token.

"The market is no longer easily roused when it comes to the Trump token," he said, adding that traders are now focused on the token as an avenue for short-term gains rather than long-term growth.