Photo: Alamy
In the last few months, President Trump has maintained an open-minded approach to cryptocurrencies, deftly positioning himself as a political beachhead for digital market entrepreneurs and investors.
Earlier this year, Trump told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that he still believes in the supremacy of the U.S. Dollar but tempered his comments by acknowledging how crypto has “taken on a life.”
He explained, “If you think of it, it’s an additional form of currency, and I used to say, ‘I want one currency, I want the dollar, I don’t want people leaving the dollar.’ I feel that way, but I will tell you, it has taken on a life.”
Over the weekend, Trump courted Libertarian voters at their national convention in Washington, D.C., pledging again to protect cryptocurrencies and Bitcoin.
“I will support the right to self-custody to the nation’s 50 million crypto holders,” he vowed. Trump added, “I will keep Elizabeth Warren and her goons away from your Bitcoin…We will save freedom, prosperity, and capitalism in America!”
In the world of Bitcoin, “self-custody” refers to the self-responsibility of the security of digital funds. Per Bitcoin Magazine, it “also means that no one can freeze your funds, and no one can stop you from making a payment you want to make.”
In a recent interview with Tim Pool, Trump said he was “backing it [crypto] as a form – as a field, and we have to because otherwise somebody else is going to be doing it from another country.”
The president also explained in a statement posted to Truth Social that he was “OPEN MINDED” to cryptocurrency companies and called the industry “BURGEONING.”
He noted, “OUR COUNTRY MUST BE THE LEADER IN THE FIELD. THERE IS NO SECOND PLACE.”
He slammed “Crooked Joe Biden” and accused him of wanting cryptocurrency “TO DIE A SLOW A PAINFUL DEATH.”
Cryptocurrency can be very volatile, but it’s nearly impossible for the federal government to regulate the industry. The digital market is a new frontier that has only just begun to unfold and could threaten the otherwise ironclad control of the U.S. Federal Reserve.
In May, Trump’s campaign announced that they would begin accepting donations in the form of cryptocurrencies, marking a new era of political fundraising. According to Marketplace, cryptocurrencies are very important to Libertarian voters, so it makes sense that his campaign would make an announcement just before the president’s speech at the Libertarian Convention last weekend.
