On June 12, former US President Trump posted on Truth Social that he hopes the remaining Bitcoins will be mined in the United States. In his post, Trump mentioned that this move is aimed at ensuring that key Bitcoin industries can remain in the United States to strengthen the country's control over cryptocurrencies and economic influence.
Presidential Roundtable on Bitcoin Mining
Several bitcoin mining industry representatives met with former President Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday night, according to Matthew Schultz, executive chairman of bitcoin mining company CleanSpark Inc. Schultz said Trump told attendees that he likes and understands cryptocurrencies, adding that bitcoin miners help stabilize energy supply on the grid. Schultz also said Trump said he would advocate for miners at the White House.
Dubbed the “Presidential Roundtable for Bitcoin Mining,” the event brought together Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin mining companies CleanSpark and Riot Platforms, Marathon Digital and other notable industry players. Key figures included CleanSpark’s S Matthew Schultz, Riot Platforms’ Jason Les and Brian Morgenstern, Marathon Digital’s CFO Salman Khan, and Fabiano Consulting’s Amanda Fabiano (former Galaxy Mining executive and Fidelity director).
Several of them also posted photos with Trump.
“I just met someone who really likes Bitcoin and also likes what CleanSpark is doing in Georgia, Mississippi, and Wyoming,” S Matthew Schultz of CleanSpark wrote on X Platform.
“I had an awesome meeting with former President Trump discussing Bitcoin and America’s energy dominance!” said Jason Les of Riot Platforms.
Attitudes towards Bitcoin have shifted, and the crypto community has become an important funder of the election
The meeting comes at a time when cryptocurrency miners are facing strong opposition over a range of issues, including climate change and impacts on local power grids. Previously, Democrats have been pushing for scrutiny of Bitcoin miners' energy consumption and carbon emissions. Not only are they critical of Bitcoin miners, but the other side is also working to increase regulation and restrictions.
At the same time, the cryptocurrency industry continues to work hard to support candidates who are bullish on digital assets by providing more donations to the Super PAC Fairshake. (Related reading: How the crypto industry influences the US election, an article to learn about the Super PAC Fairshake )
At his NFT dinner in May, Trump generously showed that his attitude towards the cryptocurrency industry and regulation has changed (in 2019, Trump publicly stated on Twitter that he does not like Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies because they are not currencies, their values are highly volatile and have no real basis), and revealed that his campaign team will begin to accept cryptocurrency donations. (Related reading: Trump "gets on the crypto circle": Buy $4,653 in NFTs to participate in the dinner, and related MEME coins soar )
In addition, he also criticized the current President Biden's tough stance on cryptocurrencies, emphasizing that Biden does not understand cryptocurrencies at all. Trump said: "The future of cryptocurrencies is in the United States, and they will not be driven overseas due to regulatory supervision in the future." He also publicly supported the self-custody rights of 50 million cryptocurrency holders in the United States.
David Bailey, CEO of Bitcoin Magazine and a cryptocurrency assistant for Trump's campaign team, previously revealed that when he first met Trump, he asked if Bitcoin could be used to solve the US "$35 trillion national debt problem."
On the other hand, the Biden campaign team is formulating digital asset policy guidelines to members of the cryptocurrency industry. According to a report by The Block at the end of last month, sources told The Block that they have noticed a major "shift" in the position of the Biden administration and campaign. In addition to turning to cryptocurrency-friendliness, they are also willing to gain a deeper understanding of digital assets and their communities.
