Lately, the Trump family™ has been getting into crypto, and crypto has been getting into them. This arrangement seems to be mutually beneficial. In his race to re-take the White House, Trump needs all the help (read: donations) he can get—particularly from Silicon Valley. Meanwhile, the crypto bros need someone who understands them (a grifter). They figure that, given another crack at the presidency, Trump could bring a light touch (or, potentially, no touch) regulatory approach to their industry—which would surely be a welcome change of pace, given how the current administration is kicking their ass.
In addition to labeling himself America’s first “crypto president,” Trump has spent the past few weeks actively courting major players in the web3 space. Now it would appear something big is headed down the pike. Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. have been teasing some sort of mysterious collaboration with the crypto community. On Tuesday, Eric tweeted that he has “truly fallen in love with Crypto / DeFi,” and that everyone should “stay tuned for a big announcement.” Not long afterward, Don Jr. chimed in with his own enigmatic missive, saying, “We’re about to shake up the crypto world with something HUGE. Decentralized finance is the future—don’t get left behind.”
Alright, guys, out with it already. Let’s hear the grift. Are you launching your own token? More MAGA NFTs? We’ve already seen the crypto shoes. What’s next? A Donald DAO run by Steve Bannon?
One thing’s for sure: the Trump-themed DJT token, allegedly launched by pharma bro ex-con Martin Shkreli, is currently in the toilet. Like, deep in the bowl. The value of the digital asset plunged 90 percent on Tuesday, dropping from a market capitalization of $55 million all the way down to $3 million. The plunge in value was preceded by the sell-off of $2 million worth of the coin from one particular wallet, leading to claims that the asset had been “rugged.” Shkreli—who, after getting out of prison for fraud, predictably embraced the crypto industry—previously claimed that he and Trump’s 18-year-old son, Barron, developed DJT together. However, despite Shkreli’s alleged culpability, nobody has established who is behind the token just yet.
The crypto industry has sought to assert its influence in this election cycle like never before. Not only is it joining forces with the Republican party and trying to get Trump elected, it’s also taking aim at progressive Democrats—and winning. Coindesk notes that the crypto industry has “devoted a seven-digit war chest to opposing candidates backed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren,” the politician who has arguably been most hostile to its agenda. Already, money from that arsenal has gone towards defeating Katie Porter (D-California), Jamaal Bowman (D-New York), and, on Tuesday, Cori Bush (D-Missouri), of “the Squad” fame. All of these politicians recently lost their seats in Congress, thanks partially to the flow of crypto cash against them.
The intensity of the lobbying may be due to crypto-stans’ growing fears of eventual extinction. Things are not going well in the “decentralized” web. The crypto glow-up of several years ago has faded (Tom Brady isn’t pimping for them anymore, FTX is a smoldering dumpster heap, and asset prices are tanking). Meanwhile, the Biden administration has cracked down on the industry’s worst offenders, leveraging the FTC and the SEC to go after fraudulent practices and companies. Crypto bros clearly feel like they’re headed in the wrong direction, and they think Trump may be their last minute Hail Mary.
