'Badge of honor': Trump supporters keep buying Truth Social stock — even as it plummets in value

More bad news for Trump Media & Technology Group shareholders came on Monday morning, April 15 when Forbes reported that the stock had "crashed again" and "sank more than 15 percent by mid-morning, building on last week's 20 percent loss." Trump Media is the parent company of Truth Social, the social media platform that former President Donald Trump has promoted as a MAGA alternative to X, formerly Twitter.

Trump's critics have been warning Trump Media & Technology Group shareholders that investing in the "meme stock" is a way to make their net worth plummet. But some of the former president's hardcore supporters have ignored their warnings and purchased Trump Media stock regardless.

In a report published on April 14, the Washington Post's Drew Harwell stresses that unwavering Trump supporters view buying Trump Media stock as a "statement of faith" in him.

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One such Trump supporter is Jerry Dean McLain, who told the Post, "I know good and well it's in Trump's hands, and he's got plans. I have no doubt it's going to explode sometime."

But so far, Trump Social stock has decreased McLain's net worth. The Trump devotee told the Post he has invested most of his "nest egg" in Trump Media stock.

"For shareholders like McLain, investing in Truth Social is less a business calculation than a statement of faith in the former president and the business traded under his initials, DJT," Harwell explains. "Even the company's plunging stock price — and the chance their investments could get mostly wiped out — doesn't seem to have shaken that faith. The company has lost $3.5 billion in value since its public debut last month."

McLain and other Trump devotees, according to Harwell, believe they are making a political statement by purchasing Trump Media stock — regardless of how badly it underperforms.

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"For some Trump investors," Harwell observes, "the stock is a badge of honor — a way to show their devotion beyond buying Trump merchandise, visiting Trump golf courses or donating to Trump's presidential campaign."

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Read the Washington Post's full report at this link (subscription required).