NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump Likening the crypto-verse to “the steel industry 100 years ago,” he vowed to make America the world leader in bitcoin and other digital currencies if elected.
Speaking at the Annual Bitcoin Conference Speaking to a standing-room-only crowd in Nashville, Tennessee, Trump vowed to make America the “cryptocurrency of the planet and the bitcoin superpower of the world.”
Trump, in contrast to the Biden administration and other Democrats, has portrayed himself as a cryptocurrency advocate, proving that he is no friend to their claims.
To rapturous cheers from the Nashville crowd, Trump said if elected he would fire Gary Gensler, the current chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, seen as the crypto-world agency’s main challenger in government. rulings on digital tokens and lawsuits against bitcoin exchanges.
“I will appoint an SEC chairman who will build the future, not block the future,” Trump said.
His embrace of the cryptocurrency comes amid high-profile endorsements from bitcoin advocates, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the twin brothers who famously sued Mark Zuckerberg for founding Facebook and founded cryptocurrency exchange Gemini.
Trump’s remarks further cemented his growing alliance with other right-leaning figures in the tech world, although the novelty of his appearance at the conference was not lost on him. While praising the audience as “geniuses”, he admitted that he is still learning about cryptocurrency.
“A lot of people don’t know what the hell it is,” he said. “So what happens when everyone figures it out? It’s going to be something.”
Trump floated a proposal to create a national bitcoin “reserve,” which he said would serve as a “permanent national asset,” though he stopped short of providing many details.
The idea of creating a strategic cryptocurrency reserve quickly spread among bitcoin supporters. Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy also proposed a bitcoin reserve on Friday, saying he would direct the Treasury to buy 4 million bitcoins, which is worth about $272 billion at today’s prices.
Immediately after Trump’s remarks, Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., said she would introduce a bill to create the stockpile.
However, bitcoin fell slightly after Trump’s remarks on Saturday, perhaps reflecting unmet expectations among crypto traders for a firmer commitment to the presidential candidate’s reserve idea.
Although the Bitcoin Conference is officially apolitical, Trump’s speech made the point An event with political panelists leaning Republicanincluding four sitting GOP senators and three GOP Senate candidates.
California Rep. Ro Khanna, the only Democrat elected, spoke early Saturday morning to criticize the trend within his party to further strengthen traditional financial centers.
“I thought the Democrats were against monopoly power. … We don’t want the banks and the Fed to have a monopoly on fast payments,” Khanna said at the panel on Saturday.
Shortly after the morning remarks, Bitcoin Magazine informed A group of Democratic representatives and candidates have sent a letter to the Democratic National Committee urging party leaders to support more cryptocurrency.
Along with Khanna, the letter’s signatories included representatives from purple districts in critical states like North Carolina and Arizona.
According to the signatories, the “hostility” of the current administration does not reflect the “progressive, forward-looking and inclusive values of our Party”.
“A refreshed leader of the ticket is an opportunity to change that perception,” they said.
In a follow-up interview with NBC News at the conference, Khanna said positive engagement with the crypto community would be in line with Democrats’ desire to be the “party of the future.”
“They are passionate, active on social media and mobilized,” Khanna said. “And this is a community that will vote.”
The organizers of the conference say that Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, declined the invitation to participate in the conference. Although the head of the conference was David Bailey, the organizers refused to comment further on the matter He criticized Harris‘ Absence in X. Harris’ campaign did not comment.
In an interview with NBC News on Friday, Bailey said that despite Harris not appearing at the conference, the window has not closed on Democrats’ ability to win support from the crypto community.
“There’s a whole progressive case for Bitcoin,” he said. While that reasoning hasn’t gotten much notice, Bailey said, “My intuition is it’s going to be for the next four years.”
On Saturday, the Financial Times informed Harris has reached out to top crypto companies looking to “reset” the relationship, citing unnamed sources.
Bailey said it will ultimately become a political necessity for all political parties to engage with bitcoin supporters as a political bloc.
“It’s not too late – in fact, everyone will have to come to terms with it,” he said. “Otherwise they won’t survive.”
Outside the conference, early Saturday morning, Trump supporters and bitcoin supporters made their presence felt.
Wearing a “Free Ross/Vote Trump” T-shirt, Ohio resident Chad Kozman addressed the community’s desire to see Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht commuted to life in prison on drug and money laundering charges. promised to do.
Kozman told NBC News that while Trump’s overtures to the cryptocurrency community are opportunistic, it’s also a sign that the community is becoming a voting bloc that needs to be reckoned with, beyond its individual roots.
“It’s been a really hard road for the Bitcoin community to get people to see the benefits of collectiveizing and coming together,” he said.