It’s a reminder of the darker side of the cryptocurrency boom: five people involved in a $21.6 million crypto fraud recently had their court cases closed.
These events mirror a much larger phenomenon: how billionaires increasingly intervene in American politics. We’ve never seen so many wealthy and powerful people trying to prop up policy and move voters, often with outlandish displays of wealth, in this election season.
Billionaire spending is becoming a central theme as Donald Trump’s brazen pitch for oil industry donations or Elon Musk’s $100 payouts to voters in Pennsylvania takes center stage. It’s what happens when the ultra-rich are willing to spend a million dollars a day during two months of weekend dealings, giving away prizes to those who support his First and Second Amendment petitions. In a time when institutions are losing their trust, such actions call into sharp relief the ethical implications of political fundraising.
Political Pandering With Crypto
The summer Bitcoin Conference in Nashville was the most obvious example of this billionaire influence. Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. both took to the stage, pledging support for the cryptocurrency industry with the federal seal of approval.
One proposal Kennedy suggested was to put the federal budget on the blockchain, and that would equal $250 billion into the crypto marketplace. However, Trump’s vision of the U.S. as “the crypto capital of the planet” would come to fruition should it establish itself as a “strategic national Bitcoin stockpile.” While capturing, this rhetoric gives the motives of such promises many questions to be answered. This isn’t about whether the candidate genuinely cares about cryptocurrency in the future or if he just ticked a box in his voter demographic.
At the same time, Chuck Schumer’s pro-crypto legislation advocacy and Vice President Kamala Harris’ crypto politics engagement further demonstrate that crypto politics is a bipartisan love affair. It all feels inauthentic, and it’s no different in how the United States courts crypto investors. Politicians seem to be going where no politicians have gone before, trying to appease a group they don’t appear even to understand. As a rebellion against centralized financial systems, the crypto space appears to be drawing in political figures who had historically avoided it.
Cryptocurrency – The Rise and Fall
Also, the rise and fall of cryptocurrency markets were meteoric, and public perception was impressed. Crypto was once considered the future of American technology before the frauds and scandals made headlines, leading to the currency’s hard fall. The FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried story is incredibly cautionary. As interest in artificial intelligence rises, crypto is now more akin to a relic of an old way of doing things than anything truly cutting edge.
However, the financial muscle of crypto has completely changed the political game. In this election cycle, crypto corporations have spent approximately $119 million on federal elections, a huge rise from what they spent in previous years. The spending has propelled them into the top ten regarding largest contributors to political campaigns since the Citizens United ruling. The influence isn’t just restricted to campaign finance, it colors policy talk and obligates politicians to at least give lip service to the industry’s demands.
A Systemic Issue
The essence of this trend underscores a systemic issue in American governance: It’s about the overpowering influence of money in politics. While many Americans remain not terribly versed in the world of cryptocurrency, the crypto lobby has managed to reshape the political landscape in favor of it, distracting from the broader implications of what its introduction might mean for the economy. About 15% of Americans own Bitcoin, but evidence shows that few pay attention to cryptocurrency-related policies when casting their ballot. As the discussion focuses on wealthy contributors instead of the needs and voices of everyday citizens, it undercuts the very democratic process that exists.
Billionaires like Musk and Trump are now using their wealth to FUND politics, and we have to deal with the fact that American politics is increasingly about those with deep pockets. The wealth and influence of a few could end up destroying the very foundations of democracy by giving them their way to dictate policies affecting the whole of us. The latest fraud case is a cautionary tale for all—to stay on guard for the unchecked power of billionaires in politics.
Final Thoughts
As we see this unfolding election season in the coming weeks, let us critically examine the motives and implications of billionaire class involvement in our democratic processes. Politics and cryptocurrency are not the whole story here, though, as drifts of financial wealth and political influence drive our understanding of the impending dissolution of democracy and how a new system of governance will take its place.
