While former President Donald Trump firmly positioned himself as a Bitcoin enthusiast at Nashville’s Bitcoin Conference, Vice President Kamala Harris approached Ripple and Coinbase.
Donald Trump delivered a powerful endorsement of the cryptocurrency industry at the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, Tennessee. The former President promised to end the "persecution" of the blockchain industry if he wins the presidential election in November.
Addressing an enthusiastic audience, Trump vowed to make the United States a leading nation for cryptocurrencies and announced plans to fire Gary Gensler, the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), on his first day in office.
This pledge was met with resounding applause and chants of "Trump" echoed through the hall.
Trump’s speech was a highlight of the three-day conference, which also featured industry leaders such as Microstrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) CEO Michael Saylor, ARK Invest founder Cathie Wood, and North American whistleblower Edward Snowden.
Snowden, speaking via video link, warned about the privacy risks associated with Bitcoin, while Saylor made multi-million-dollar price predictions for the coming years. Harris, Trump's likely opponent, sought to connect with major crypto firms behind the scenes.
Edward Snowden’s Cautionary Message
Michael Saylor projected that Bitcoin could be worth $3 million by 2045 in a worst-case scenario. The moderate and more probable forecast stands at around $13 million, with the bullish scenario reaching an astronomical $49 million.
Edward Snowden, however, injected a note of caution. The renowned whistleblower, who exposed extensive surveillance activities by the NSA and now resides in Russia, warned that Bitcoin is not as anonymous as often believed. He highlighted potential privacy issues if wallets require personal identification.
“When they have your transaction history, they have your life history”, Snowden cautioned. “They know what you read, what you buy, who you send to, who you support politically, like where your donations went—all of that is available to them. They can infer your thinking, they can infer your affiliations.” Snowden expressed concerns about increasing efforts to control crypto transactions, warning, “We’re running out of time to fix this, and the consequences of ignoring it are a whole lot worse.”
Political Maneuvering and Warnings
Snowden concluded his speech with a warning against political exploitation of Bitcoin in the current U.S. presidential race: "Cast your vote, but don't join a cult," he said, likely referencing Trump's sudden shift from criticizing Bitcoin as a threat to the U.S. dollar to now being a major supporter.
Trump seemed unfazed by Snowden’s words and used his speech to sharply criticize the Biden administration's stance on cryptocurrencies. He promised an immediate policy shift if elected and assured to end Joe Biden’s and Kamala Harris’s "anti-crypto crusade", as he called it.
In 2019, Trump had tweeted that he was "not a fan of Bitcoin" and other cryptocurrencies, claiming they were unregulated and could facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trafficking and other illegal activities. This stance seems to have evolved significantly.
Trump’s Vision for Bitcoin in America
Mirroring Snowden’s concerns about political risks, Trump focused on the economic competition with China: "They will dominate, and we cannot let China dominate," Trump asserted, citing China's advancements in crypto adoption.
Weeks earlier, Trump had advocated for relocating Bitcoin mining to the U.S. to secure the remaining mineable Bitcoins within domestic reserves.
Trump proposed holding confiscated Bitcoins from convicted criminals in a national Bitcoin reserve.
Trump said, "If I am elected, it will be the policy of my administration, United States of America, to keep 100% of all the bitcoin the U.S. government currently holds or acquires into the future."
Trump also proposed establishing a presidential advisory committee for cryptocurrencies to further support the industry. He encouraged the audience, "Never sell your Bitcoin," eliciting enthusiastic cheers.
Harris’s Quiet Crypto Diplomacy
While Trump loudly proclaimed his crypto-friendly stance, Vice President Kamala Harris worked quietly to improve relations between the Democratic Party and the crypto industry.
With President Joe Biden stepping down from the race, Harris is the presumptive nominee, pending a formal decision at the party convention in August.
Harris’s advisors recently reached out to leading crypto companies like Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN), Circle, and Ripple Labs, aiming to foster a more constructive dialogue and create a regulatory framework that supports industry growth.
According to a Financial Times report, Harris's move represents a significant, though unofficial, policy shift for the Democratic Party, underscoring the growing importance of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in contemporary politics and the upcoming presidential campaign.
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