The Velvet-Rope Nation

When belonging has a price, America ceases to be a promised land. Citizenship becomes privilege, justice becomes transaction, and the very soul of democracy is up for sale.

Guest article by Michael Cohen. Follow him on Substack for more by clicking here.

Let me ask you a simple question: when did America become an airport duty-free shop? Because that’s exactly what Donald Trump has turned citizenship into: a luxury good, shrink-wrapped in faux patriotism and sold like a Rolex knockoff in Times Square. Only now, it’s not a green card; it’s a Trump “Gold Card.” And if you’re feeling extra fancy, maybe even a “Platinum Card.”

Price tag? Five million bucks. That’s right: citizenship as a pay-to-play hustle. A velvet rope around the American dream, polished and propped up by Howard Lutnick, Commerce Secretary, and the man who has apparently decided that his primary job is to manufacture headlines.

Now, let’s be blunt: this wasn’t some nuanced policy conversation. Trump parrots lines; he doesn’t architect them. The white-hot idea here is Lutnick’s. He leans in, whispers “Gold Card,” watches the president repeat it, and then soaks up the camera time as if he’s launched a tech IPO. For Lutnick, this is less about immigration or national security and more about staying seen and relevant.

And then Lutnick allegedly claims more than a thousand of these cards have been sold. One thousand at five million each equals five billion dollars. That’s a figure that would put a lot of politicians in uncomfortable positions — if anyone could actually show the money. Show us the escrow accounts. Show us the audits. Show us anything beyond a boast and a grin for the cameras.

What this proposal does, whether floated irresponsibly or marketed deliberately, is reduce belonging to a commodity. The EB-5 program that preceded this mess at least pretended to be about investment and jobs. It was flawed, sure, but it wore a fig leaf: infrastructure projects, regional centers, the promise — however thin — that money parked here might generate work. Lutnick’s version is a makeover without the work. No need to create jobs, no need to anchor investment in communities, just hand over a check and step onto a fast track to membership.

Who are these mysterious purchasers? Lutnick seemed unconcerned when a possibility was raised that Russian oligarchs or Chinese spies could buy in. That shrug should terrify anybody who cares about national security. If a nation’s right to admit people is auctioned, then the gatekeepers have abandoned any commitment to values, law, or oversight.

And what of American workers and immigrants already in the queue? This administration’s other moves — cranking up fees on H-1B applicants and throttling asylum processing — show a pattern: make legal migration harder for ordinary people while clearing fast lanes for the wealthy. It’s not immigration reform; it’s a two-tiered system of belonging: premium for the rich, red tape for everyone else.

Lutnick’s hustle is particularly galling because it is theatrical. He isn’t talking about policy reform matrices or bipartisan compromise. He’s pitching a package, describing vetting as a checkbox, and cultivating headlines. That’s the playbook of a PR man masquerading as a policymaker. It’s thin theater pretending to be governance. Howard Lutnick came from Wall Street; deals are celebrated there but consequences are real. His pivot to policy theater shows contempt for institutions and an appetite for limelight. Accept it and we surrender accountability, handing him the keys to the national conscience and dignity.

If he’s actually raised billions, produce the receipts. If there are safeguards and congressional checks, show us the language. Failing that, treat this for what it really is: an experiment in selling access to peace-of-mind, safety, and opportunity — the very things the republic once vowed to protect on principle, not price.

We should be clear-eyed: America has long puzzled over how to balance sovereignty, economics, and compassion. Thoughtful debate about investor visas and immigration pathways is legitimate. But what Lutnick is peddling is not a policy framework; it’s a product launch with a moral discount applied. Public service isn’t a brand extension.

So let Lutnick have his camera time. He’ll smile while cable reels broadcast his soundbites. But don’t be fooled by the gloss. The Gold Card pitch is a symptom, not a solution; a performance designed to boost one man’s spotlight at the expense of the nation’s integrity. And while he grins, the rest of us will be left to pick through the receipts.

America was never meant to be a shopping mall where citizenship is sold at the register. It was meant to be an idea, a promise to be earned and protected. If we don’t call out this sleight of hand, if we don’t insist on accountability, then the next “product” could be worse; and the price of freedom will keep climbing.

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