Eight Republican candidates are gearing as much as take the debate stage tonight as the early 2024 presidential election cycle reaches a pivotal level.
Former President and Republican frontrunner Donald Trump—who owns some Ethereum and has his personal NFT collection—shall be notably absent, electing to skip the chit-chat in lieu of a pre-recorded interview with former Fox Information host Tucker Carlson on Twitter.
Trump additionally used Twitter in 2019 to say that “he’s not a giant fan of Bitcoin and different cryptocurrencies,” favoring the U.S. greenback. However different presidential hopefuls have additionally weighed in. Where do the candidates stand?
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has expressed assist for Bitcoin since his first official day as a candidate. Throughout his marketing campaign’s kickoff alongside Tesla CEO and Twitter proprietor Elon Musk, DeSantis told the billionaire that Bitcoin will in all probability be killed off if President Joe Biden is reelected.
“You might have each proper to do Bitcoin,” DeSantis additionally mentioned. “The one cause these individuals in Washington don’t like it’s as a result of they don’t management it.”
DeSantis has critiqued central financial institution digital currencies (CBDC) as effectively. He as soon as referred to as the know-how a “huge switch of energy from particular person customers to a government” and moved to prevent a digital greenback from ever coming into the Sunshine State.
CBDCs are just like stablecoins, as each are tokens pegged to the worth of a sovereign foreign money like the dollar. However as an alternative of being issued on public networks by personal firms, CBDCs are maintained by their respective governments or central banks.
Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy
Whereas Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. established himself as a pro-Bitcoin Biden various in Might at Bitcoin 2023 in Miami, Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy was additionally a speaker with a lot to say about crypto’s largest coin.
“Thomas Jefferson, he would’ve been mining for Bitcoin as we speak, I’ve little doubt about that,” he mentioned. “That’s an American embodiment. It’s who we’re as individuals.”
Throughout his speech at Bitcoin 2023, Ramaswamy mentioned that Bitcoin shouldn’t be a safety, lambasted the Federal Reserve for making an attempt to play “monetary god,” criticized CBDCs, and skewered the Biden’s administration proposed 30% excise tax on crypto mining.
Considered one of the main targets of his marketing campaign is to reform the U.S. central financial institution, Ramaswamy mentioned. He implored conference-goers to get him to the debate stage by donating Bitcoin to his marketing campaign, and to make 2024 a “referendum on sound cash in the United States.”
Ramaswamy instructed the crypto information website CoinDesk in Might that he’s the only candidate with sufficient information to speak about Bitcoin intelligently. He additionally accused DeSantis of adopting many features of his pro-Bitcoin and anti-CBDC stance.
Earlier this week, Ramaswamy obtained a thumbs up from Elon Musk, who referred to as him “a really promising candidate.”
Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina
South Carolina Senator Tim Scott has established himself as supportive of crypto regulation. He’s a member of the Senate’s Financial Innovation Caucus, which discusses points like digital belongings, stablecoins, and CBDCs.
Scott was additionally a co-sponsor of the Equal Opportunity for All Investors Act, a invoice that finally failed final 12 months however sought to outline digital belongings as an funding and modify present guidelines surrounding accredited buyers.
At a Senate Banking Committee listening to dedicated to digital belongings in February, he called out Securities and Change Fee Chair Gary Gensler for his resolution to not attend, contrasting it with a plethora of TV interviews Gensler has carried out.
He additionally requested whether or not the SEC was “asleep at the wheel” for failing to take motion towards FTX earlier than it was too late, resulting in the collapse of the alternate final November.
“The American individuals should know why no motion was taken previous to the collapse of FTX, and the way tens of millions of {dollars} of American’s hard-earned cash simply vanished into nothing,” he mentioned.
North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum
North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum hasn’t been a vocal proponent of Bitcoin on the marketing campaign path, however he’s given the crypto sector a tip of the hat inside the previous 12 months. Commenting on the development of an information middle in North Dakota final 12 months, he noted the state’s emergence as a hub for crypto mining.
“This main funding in North Dakota will additional cement our state’s rising status as a hub for knowledge facilities and cryptocurrency mining,” he mentioned. “We’re well-positioned to assist knowledge facilities and different energy-intensive industries.”
May very well be a supporter, however it’s laborious to inform
There have been a number of candidates set to take the stage on Wednesday who don’t seem to have issued public feedback about cryptocurrency or Bitcoin. They’re former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson, and former Vice President Mike Pence.
Honorable point out
Miami’s pro-crypto Mayor Francis Suarez acknowledged on Wednesday that he didn’t qualify for the upcoming debate, after he erroneously claimed he did every week earlier than, per ABC Action News.
Throughout an interview with the crypto information website The Block, Suarez mentioned he would doubtlessly take his wage in Bitcoin as president, one thing he already does as Miami’s mayor. Moreover, the candidate accepts Bitcoin transactions.
“I feel it’s essential for a president to encourage generational innovation,” he mentioned. “I do assist various belongings like crypto, and I feel they’re superb for a rustic like the U.S.”