Nicki Minaj is not being subtle.
Hours after standing on stage at the Treasury Department and declaring herself President Donald Trump’s “number one fan,” the rapper took to X to share a photo of herself holding a gold card emblazoned with Trump’s face, his signature, and the words “45th & 47th President of the United States.”
Her caption? Just one word: “Welp…”
The post racked up over 1 million views within hours, with thousands of comments flooding in as fans and critics alike tried to make sense of what they were seeing.
The card in question bears a striking resemblance to the branding of Trump’s Gold Card initiative — an immigration program established via executive order in September 2025 that offers wealthy foreigners a fast-track path to U.S. residency and citizenship in exchange for a $1 million contribution to the federal government.
Welp… pic.twitter.com/c5v8ztVVLR
— Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) January 28, 2026
Whether Minaj is holding an official document, a symbolic token, or simply a piece of commemorative merchandise remains unclear. But the timing — and the optics — have not gone unnoticed.
‘I Came to This Country as an Illegal Immigrant’
The image carries particular weight given Minaj’s own backstory.
The rapper has previously spoken about her childhood journey to America without documentation. In 2020, she posted on Instagram about the trauma of family separation at the border, describing the fear children must feel being torn from their parents in a foreign land.
That same year, she publicly distanced herself from Trump, saying his immigration policies were a line she wouldn’t cross.
Now she’s crossing it — in a white fur coat, with a gold card in hand.
A $1 Million Ticket to Citizenship
The Trump Gold Card program, established through Executive Order 14351, allows individuals who contribute $1 million to the Department of Commerce to bypass traditional visa requirements and receive expedited permanent residency under existing EB-1 or EB-2 categories. Corporations can sponsor employees for $2 million.
The program has drawn criticism from policy experts who argue it essentially allows the wealthy to purchase citizenship while ordinary immigrants wait years — sometimes decades — in backlogged queues.
For Minaj, who has spent the past several months aligning herself with conservative figures and causes, the Gold Card photo raises inevitable questions. Is this a flex? A statement? A receipt?
She hasn’t said. And maybe that’s the point.
‘The Hate Motivates Me’
The X post came just hours after Minaj’s appearance at the Trump Accounts Summit, where she stood alongside the president and Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary.
She used the platform to push back against critics, saying the backlash only fuels her support for Trump. She also announced a six-figure pledge to help fund investment accounts for her fans through the administration’s new child savings program.
Trump welcomed her warmly, at one point remarking that he had done “pretty well” with her community — a comment he left unexplained.
Minaj also spoke of divine protection over the president, closing her remarks with a firm “Amen.”
Nicki Minaj spotted holding hands with president Trump on Fox News
“I’m his No 1 fan, Everything he does is good ”
— Red Media (@RedMedia_us) January 28, 2026
The Fur Coat, the Nails, and the Card
If the Summit appearance was Minaj planting her flag, the Gold Card photo is her waving it.
In the image, her signature long nails — the same ones Trump fawned over during the event — grip the gleaming card against what appears to be the same white fur coat she wore on stage.
It’s a full-circle moment, served with the kind of visual storytelling Minaj has always excelled at.
The post has since become a flashpoint, with supporters praising her boldness and detractors questioning her motives. Some have speculated about what benefits, if any, her proximity to the administration might yield — particularly given past reports about her husband Kenneth Petty’s legal troubles and her brother Jelani Maraj’s incarceration.
Minaj has not addressed those questions. But with one photo and a single word, she’s guaranteed the conversation won’t stop anytime soon.
Welp, indeed.
