In brief
- Volunteer organizers are hoping to show that crypto can be a bipartisan issue.
- Investor and Bitcoin Mark Cuban is expected to attend, as well as North Carolina Rep. Wiley Nickel.
- The group and its limited online reach has drawn criticism from Crypto Twitter.
Vice President Kamala Harris’ stance on crypto is relatively unknown, but organizers behind a new group called Crypto4Harris are pressing forward with an initiative to rally digital asset-holding supporters around the Democratic Party’s 2024 presidential nominee.
The grassroots network of crypto advocates is set to host a town hall event through Zoom next week. Attendees will have the opportunity to converse with industry leaders, policy experts, and crypto enthusiasts backing Harris’ White House bid, a description of the event states.
With less than 90 days before November’s divisive U.S. election, the mobilization of crypto fans follows President Joe Biden’s decision not to run for reelection last month. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has made repeated remarks in support of crypto on the campaign trail.
The Crypto4Harris account on Twitter (aka X) said that billionaire Mark Cuban is among the “heavyweights” scheduled to attend. Previously, the investor and noted Bitcoin fan told Decrypt that multiple people from Harris’ camp had reached out to him with crypto-related questions, which he described “as a good sign.”
Cuban did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Decrypt.
The Biden administration has adopted a tough stance toward crypto over the past few years, between a proposed tax on Bitcoin miners, the vetoing a pro-crypto resolution in May, and enforcement actions pursued under Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler.
Trump has seized on what some crypto advocates describe as an all-out regulatory war. The former president was met with thunderous applause, for example, in Nashville when he told Bitcoiners that he would “fire Gary Gensler” if reelected, ending an “anti-crypto crusade.”
Whether or not Harris’ camp turns a new leaf on crypto remains an open question. Still, Harris recruited David Plouffe recently as a senior advisor. Plouffe served as the campaign manager for former President Barack Obama’s successful White House bid in 2008, and he previously held a seat on the crypto exchange Binance’s global advisory board.
‘A lot of hatred’
Crypto4Harris’ primary organizers are volunteers with full-time jobs in the crypto industry. In an interview with Decrypt, they said that they want to show people that crypto isn’t a one-party issue and that a Harris administration wouldn’t be a continuation of the Biden administration.
“This is somebody who understands Silicon Valley,” Jonathan Padilla, the CEO of crypto data analytics platform Snickerdoodle Labs, told Decrypt of Harris. “This is somebody who understands that innovation and entrepreneurship is super, super critical to America.”
William Schweitzer, who runs his own advisory firm, said he’s a Democratic strategist interested in sending a crypto-based message of support to the Harris campaign. Pointing to a coalition of “left-leaning folks” who have publicly supported the technology, Schweitzer said Crypto4Harris is creating a platform to showcase that message.
“If you look across the Crypto Twitter sphere, you’ll find a lot of hatred […] toward where the current administration is,” he said. “This is about putting a new foot forward.”
The organizers said that they are welcoming anybody in the crypto space to join what is described as an “organic coalition,” and that they just represent its current embodiment from a leadership perspective.
‘Political football’
Rep. Wiley Nickel (D-NC) said on Twitter that he’s looking forward to speaking at the town hall, which had 300 registrants as of this writing. Last week, Nickel told Decrypt that there are signs Harris would take a “take a balanced approach” toward crypto as commander-in-chief.
“As Democrats and [Kamala Harris] supporters, we want to encourage innovation and protect consumers,” Nickel wrote on Twitter Wednesday. “Allowing crypto to become a political football is only going to set the U.S. further behind.”
Nickel did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Decrypt.
Justin Slaughter, director of policy at the investment firm Paradigm, encouraged people to attend the town hall, even if they don’t support Harris. On Twitter, he said the event would likely provide insight into “what the ongoing reset on crypto and tech by the Harris campaign means.”
The event’s announcement received notable pushback online. One Twitter user compared it to lobsters organizing an event for boiling water, while others pointed to a lack of specific policy statements, or the Crypto4Harris account’s relatively small digital footprint.
“You’re happy to see an effort from an account with 900 followers and no specifics?” VanEck’s Head of Digital Assets Matthew Sigel asked on Twitter. “It’s pathetic.”
Sigel’s question was posed in response to a Twitter post from Sheila Warren, CEO of the Crypto Council for Innovation, an industry alliance involved in crypto policy. Warren had remarked that “crypto is the ultimate big tent” and that Crypto4Harris’ outreach is in the spirit of crypto’s inclusiveness “no matter what some parts of the community tell you.”
“The data shows that crypto wallet holders span all demographics and geographies,” Warren wrote in a subsequent post. “And the goal should be to engage with anyone who’s willing to be open and seeks education, regardless of political affiliation.”
Edited by Ryan Ozawa.
