Donald Trump has been photographed countless times during his time as a celebrity and the 45th President of the US.
But a mugshot of him could become one of the most defining images of the 21st century so far after his indictment over a $130,000 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
And marketing execs believe the photo could be used as a rallying cry for both pro-Trump and anti-Trump camps.
The former president will be arraigned in Manhattan on Tuesday and will be treated like any other suspect: He will be read his Miranda rights, fingerprinted and even handcuffed.
Trump believes his mugshot will become “the most famous in the history of the world” and plans to use it to raise millions for his presidential campaign, a friend of his has said.
Though sources familiar with the planning process have said he may not be forced to pose for a mugshot.
Donald Trump will be arraigned in Manhattan on Tuesday and will be treated like any other suspect: He will be read his Miranda rights, fingerprinted and may even be handcuffed.
The image shows a fake AI-generated mugshot as Trump’s allies claim he believes his photo will become the most famous of all time.
Florida-based marketing executive Craig Agranoff says a mugshot of Donald Trump will be one of the most culturally significant photos ever.
He believes it will be used by both Trump supporters and anti-Trump supporters in the fallout from criminal charges brought against the former president.
Agranoff said: “The (pro-Trump) people who will dislike it will use it to mobilize, and the people who are against Trump will use it to make fun of him.”
The photo can be seen on products like t-shirts, posters and coffee mugs and will likely inspire Halloween costumes, according to him.
He added: “It could become the cultural icon of our time.”
Toni Holt Kramer, a friend of Trump for more than a decade and head of the Trumpettes support group, criticized the allegation, saying the potential mugshot of the former president will be a symbolic image.
President Trump and his supporters know that the mugshot epitomizes the witch hunt against Trump and is emblematic of all that is wrong with the banana republic that [President] Biden’s America has been converted,” he told the Mail on Sunday.
“President Trump knows his mugshot will become the most famous mugshot in the history of the world.
Florida-based marketing executive Craig Agranoff says a mugshot of Donald Trump will go down as one of the most culturally significant photos ever.
“It’s something that will become symbolic of the left’s attack on Trump, and any attempt to use it to humiliate him will backfire spectacularly.”
Everyone is going to want it. Even his detractors.
After news of his impending indictment broke last Thursday, money began flooding Trump’s re-election campaign when his team sent out fundraising emails.
A source close to the former president said $4m (£3.2m) had ‘come in’ from ‘every state in America’.
Trump already has a war chest of more than $100m (£81m) to fund his run for the White House in 2024.
A source said: “By Friday night there was over $4 million in donations and it looked like we would raise $5 million by the end of this weekend.”
Donations are pouring in from every state in the United States.
The source continued: “There are plans to offer printed mugshot items on Trump’s official website.”
“We expect to have the items for sale within 48 hours of your appearance.”
A mugshot of Donald Trump could be used by both pro-Trump and anti-Trump supporters in the fallout from criminal charges brought against the former president.
Anti-Trump protesters gather outside the New York County Criminal Courthouse
Supporters of former President Donald Trump gather to show their support outside Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Donald Trump’s potential mugshot will be a symbolic image with his supporters
Trump is expected to fly into LaGuardia Airport on Monday and stay at Trump Tower before heading to midtown Manhattan around 1 p.m. Tuesday to surrender.
You are likely to be spared the indignity of a criminal walk in which a suspect is led out of the Manhattan police station or district attorney’s office in handcuffs in front of the cameras for the world to see.
Instead, he’ll probably walk in, dressed in a suit and tie, surrounded by aides and Secret Service agents. And even he could cut a deal with prosecutors to get in through a back entrance, bypassing the growing media frenzy.
Local state and federal law enforcement are now braced for hordes of Trump loyalists and liberal protesters who are now expected to arrive at the prosecutor’s office.
Trump would have to travel from his Mar-a-Lago estate (above) to New York
Trump would likely make the trip on his campaign plane, known as Trump Force One.
Trump is accused of $130,000 in payments that his former attorney, Michael Cohen, sent to porn star Stormy Daniels toward the end of his 2016 campaign.
Prosecutors say the payment violated campaign finance laws and was made to silence Daniels about an affair with the business titan.
Justice Department officials are said to be upset by the Manhattan district attorney’s decision to indict Trump.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s intent to criminally indict the former president sparked dismay and anger at Mar-a-Lago.
And “senior officials” in the Justice Department were concerned about the strength of Bragg’s case.
They are currently investigating claims that Trump attempted to overturn Biden’s 2020 election victory in Georgia, and whether he incited the January 6, 2021 riots, and federal prosecutors are said to believe both cases are stronger than allegations of silent money.
They fear that Bragg’s decision to proceed could undermine future prosecutions if New York’s case against Trump really collapses or ends in an acquittal.
Trump denied having an affair. And, on March 18, the former president declared that he would be arrested on the 21st. He called on his followers to protest the matter.
He will be the first president arrested since Ulysses S. Grant was pulled over for speeding his horse and buggy at the corner of 13th and M streets in Washington, DC, in 1872, but the police let him go with a ticket.