Rapper Nicki Minaj made headlines this week for declaring herself President Donald Trump's "number one fan" as he launched his savings accounts for newborns—and now she's gotten a telling gift for her trouble.
Minaj appeared Wednesday at the Trump Accounts Summit in Washington, D.C., where she praised Trump’s rollout of investment accounts for U.S.-born babies.
A provision in Trump’s tax legislation creates so-called “Trump Accounts,” which provide $1,000 for every newborn whose parents open an account. The funds are invested in the stock market by private firms, and the child can access the money upon turning 18. Minaj says she plans to contribute between $150,000 and $300,000 to the accounts.
Her support has paid off—afterward, she bragged that her application for U.S. citizenship is getting the fast-track treatment by posting an image of a "Trump Gold Card" to X, simply typing "Welp..." as a caption.
@NICKIMINAJ/X
Launched in December, Trump’s “gold card” creates a fast track to U.S. citizenship for wealthy immigrants willing to pay $1 million, plus a $15,000 processing fee. Critics have condemned the scheme for emerging alongside the administration’s escalating nationwide immigration crackdown.
The card grants approved applicants permanent U.S. residency, mirroring the existing EB-5 immigrant investor visa program. Trump said in December that sales had already reached $1.3 billion.
And there appears to be a very telling reason why Minaj is so thrilled to have the card in her possession.
In a 2018 Facebook post criticizing the first Trump administration’s family-separation policies, Minaj said she “came to this country as an illegal immigrant at five years old."
In 2024, during a TikTok streaming session, she discussed her legal status again:
"I'm not a citizen of America. Isn't that crazy? I was born on a beautiful island called Trinidad and Tobago. But I've been in the States for many years."
"You would think that with the millions of dollars that I've paid in taxes to this country that I would have been given an honorary citizenship many, many, many thousands of years ago."
It is possible that her husband Kenneth Petty’s 1995 conviction for attempted first-degree rape of a 16-year-old would make Minaj ineligible for a green card through marriage. The couple were later sued by Petty’s accuser, Jennifer Hough, who alleged harassment, intimidation, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Minaj’s gold card allows her to live in the United States without restriction, though she remains a non-citizen under the terms of the program. Minaj later dismissed critics who said she contributed to the "Trump Accounts" so she could resolve immigration troubles.
In a follow-up post, she wrote:
"Residency? Residency? The cope is coping. Finalizing that citizenship paperwork as we speak as per MY wonderful, gracious, charming President. Thanks to the petition."
"I wouldn’t have done it without you. Oh CitizenNIKA you are thee moment Gold Trump card free of charge."
Minaj was swiftly called out.
According to The Hill, the White House claims the gift of the gold card is just "a memento."
Either way, we'll see just how much those Trump Gold Cards are truly worth the day Trump is no longer in power.
