This is a guest post from Voyager, a crypto brokerage firm with a commission-free trading app.
Politics are full of controversial “pro” and “anti” [fill in the blank] stances, but this presidential election, one candidate is basing part of his campaign on a fundamentally unbiased platform – technology. Andrew Yang, an entrepreneur running for the Democratic presidential nomination, has gained the adoration of many in the crypto and blockchain world for his pro-tech ticket.
Yang has been a long time crypto advocate, and years before his bid for president, he was following Bitcoin (there’s a tweet from 2013 to prove it). Early in his campaign, he made his stance clear and began accepting donations in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a range of other cryptocurrencies. More notably, he proposed a national framework for regulating cryptocurrencies.
Just this week, Yang criticized the existing crypto regulation in the U.S. and reiterated the need for fair and transparent guidance in an interview with Bloomberg. “Right now we’re stuck with this hodgepodge of state-by-state treatments and it’s bad for everybody. It’s bad for innovators who want to invest in the space,” he said.
While he may be the lone crypto wolf on the 2020 campaign trail, there’s a growing number of American politicians taking a pro-Bitcoin stance. Here are a few standout advocates.
Kelly Loeffler – The former CEO of Bakkt, the first CFTC-regulated business to offer Bitcoin options, was recently appointed to the Senate by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to fill a vacant seat. While still a junior Senator, it’s likely she’ll continue to push for innovation and favorable regulation in her new role.
Jared Poli – The Governor of Colorado has embraced the promise of cryptocurrencies and blockchain. In March 2019, he signed into law the Colorado Digital Token Act, a bill that attempts to exempt cryptocurrencies from securities regulations.
Mike Crapo – The Senate Banking Committee Chairman (R-ID) expressed a favorable view of cryptocurrencies and blockchain during Senate hearings this summer, saying cryptocurrencies could be beneficial and that he believes, “the U.S. should lead in their development.”
Gavin Newsom – Before Yang, there was Newsom. The Governor of California was the first high profile politician to accept campaign donations in Bitcoin in 2014.
Mark Gordon – As Governor, Gordon has made his state of Wyoming a haven for crypto businesses. In 2019, he passed a series of bills that recognized digital assets as property, clearing the way for banks to act as crypto custodians.
Crypto and blockchain have yet to become mainstream campaign talking points, but the growing number of candidates on both ends of the political spectrum pushing for reform is encouraging. Hopefully, 2020 will be the year clear regulations and guidelines emerge in the U.S.
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The original Voyager post can be found here. You can earn $25 in BTC by signing up for the Voyager app and trading $100 (or use code SLUDGE25).
