The Donald to the rescue?
Former President Donald Trump teased an upcoming announcement with a superhero-themed video Wednesday, baiting his Truth Social followers with a promise of a major announcement the following day.
In the 15-second clip, the 76-year-old Trump told viewers that “America needs a superhero!” Fantastical music blared as the screen cut away to an animation of the former president posing like Superman in front of Trump Tower, tearing open his business suit to reveal a chiseled T-logo bodysuit and laser-like eyes.
The message concludes with text promising a “MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT” Dec. 15.
The bizarre video is not the first time Trump has borrowed from pop culture to promote his agenda. In November 2018, he famously teased sanctions on Iran by tweeting a “Game of Thrones”-inspired meme.
Months later, in April 2019, he tweeted a fan-made video aimed at his celebrity detractors set to the score of the 2012 film “The Dark Knight Rises.”
Trump announced his third consecutive presidential campaign Nov. 15, but his run has been overshadowed by a series of self-inflicted controversies and has so far failed to recapture the media buzz of his first candidacy in 2015 and 2016.
Trump’s team didn’t immediately respond to The Post’s inquiries, but speculation swirled on social media about what the announcement might be.
Guesses include Trump announcing a return to Twitter after CEO Elon Musk restored his account on Nov. 19.
Trump, who launched Truth Social last year, was booted from Twitter after his supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 in an effort to overturn his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden.
Other possibilities include Trump announcing his intended running mate or a long-shot bid to become speaker of the House of Representatives, which doesn’t require the officeholder to actually be a House member.
Republicans will take control of the lower chamber of Congress on Jan. 3 and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is struggling to secure the necessary 218 votes due to a conservative rebellion led by Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.). However, Republicans hold a slim 222-213 majority and just five GOP defections would deliver Trump a humiliating defeat. Two returning House Republicans voted to impeach Trump last year and earned his lasting ire, which would give the ex-president almost no room for further defections.
After he left office last year, some of Trump’s allies nudged him to run for House speaker. His former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon told Trump he’d have the satisfying experience of taking the speaker’s gavel from the hands of his nemesis Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who impeached him twice. Trump would then have the option of attempting to oust Biden via impeachment, though that effort almost certainly would flop in the Democrat-held Senate.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) said at a rally this year with Trump that “I’m going to nominate Donald Trump for speaker of the US House of Representatives” and Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) has cryptically teased an “interesting” nominee for speaker.
It’s also conceivable that Trump is simply attempting to attract eyeballs to a relatively benign proclamation.
The former president has struggled to recapture his sway over the Republican Party after a number of his handpicked candidates failed in the midterm elections, including Senate contenders Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania and Herschel Walker in Georgia.
Trump also faces a number of legal issues dragging on his candidacy.
On Monday, a Florida federal judge formally dismissed Trump’s request for a neutral third party to examine hundreds of potentially classified documents seized by federal investigators from his Mar-a-Lago resort in August.
Last month, Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed a special counsel, veteran prosecutor Jack Smith, to investigate Trump’s handling of government documents and his actions to challenge his loss to Biden in 2020.
Trump’s looming announcement comes as recent polls show that the former commander-in-chief faces a stiff potential challenge from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a hypothetical head-to-head primary.
According to a Wall Street Journal poll, 86% of Republicans who say they are likely to vote in a primary or nominating contest view DeSantis, 44, favorably, while only 74% view Trump favorably.
Trump faced broad condemnation last month, including from fellow Republicans, for hosting anti-Semites at Mar-a-Lago. He later defended himself by saying he only was anticipating Jew-bashing rapper Kanye West and didn’t know he’d bring white supremacist Nick Fuentes.