On May 6, Representative Maxine Waters walked out of a hearing on the future of digital assets to take a stand against what she calls President Donald Trump’s “crypto corruption”.
She is objecting to the ongoing hearing and urging other lawmakers to join her in protest in the latest hearing.
At present, Republicans and Democrats are working closely on bipartisan efforts to bring clarity to the digital asset space through a clear regulatory framework.
On May 5, a group of lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives introduced a new draft bill, which is designed to create clear rules for how cryptocurrencies are handled in the country.
The 212-page proposal outlines how different types of digital assets will be labeled and which government agency will oversee them.
It outlines specific guidelines to decide whether a digital asset should fall under the watch of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) or the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
It also includes a system for reclassifying assets if their nature changes over time. The bill treats payment stablecoins as a separate category from others.
It also puts new rules in place for crypto exchanges and secondary trading platforms, which require them to follow anti-money laundering laws under the Bank Secrecy Act.
Under the proposal, companies that issue new digital tokens must share key information with regulators. However, developers and companies that provide the underlying technology may be exempt from some rules to encourage innovation.
In a closely divided vote, the House Banking Committee has approved Michelle Bowman’s nomination as the next Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision, with a 13-11 tally.
The decision now moves to the full Senate, where her nomination will decide the Fed’s regulatory stance on cryptocurrency.
Trump’s Crypto Ventures are Under Fire
Since its inception, President Donald Trump and his family’s crypto ventures have become a hotbed for controversies.
Recently, an Abu Dhabi-based firm announced the investment of $2 billion into Binance using a stablecoin linked to Donald Trump’s family. This investment has raised concerns about Trump’s growing crypto entanglements.
“This is the biggest corruption scandal in the history of the American presidency,” said Senator Chris Murphy. Though Trump does not formally hold a position in the crypto firm, his active promotion includes the launch of a meme coin ‘TRUMP’ and private investor events at Mar-a-Lago.
According to some reports, World Liberty Financial has already amassed over $550 million by leveraging its proximity to Trump. Critics like SonicLabs founder Andre Cronje call it a “black spot” on the crypto sector’s credibility.
Also Read: Donald Trump Says, “I Support Cryptocurrency, But Didn’t Profit From it
