Trump’s Executive Order on Crypto Currency Is a Dangerous Grift
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On his fourth day as president, Donald Trump has signed an Executive Order (EO) to promote cryptocurrencies in the country, possibly towards a national digital asset stockpile. In response, Robert Weissman, co-president of Public Citizen, issued the following statement:
“Trump’s cryptocurrency executive order (EO) will help super-inflate what’s already a dangerous speculative bubble in an artificial, unregulated asset that will, eventually, burst. The inevitable crash will badly injure millions of everyday Americans. Elevating crypto also threatens broader financial markets with systemic risk. If Trump knows this – and he might, since he once mocked crypto – he doesn’t care.
“This pro-crypto policy is not happening because crypto is a magic currency (it’s not a currency at all), or that it is somehow part of a human liberation project, or because it undermines state power or for any philosophical, pro-innovation, economic advancement or pro-consumer reason.
“No, Trump is pushing crypto because he’s in on the racket. Trump himself has in recent days minted tens of billions, at least on paper, by launching a new cryptocurrency. And the crypto industry’s massive spending in the last election backed Trump and helped deliver the Ohio Senate seat to Republicans.
“This executive order should properly be titled, ‘Digital Financial Grift.’”