Coinbase political initiative features US lawmaker who admitted to ethics violations
United States-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase’s latest push advocating for crypto holders to “speak directly to lawmakers” featured a House of Representatives member who previously acknowledged 11 ethics violations.
As of Aug. 15, more than 54,000 individuals had signed on to Coinbase’s “Stand with Crypto Alliance” in an effort to engage with U.S. lawmakers at the federal level. The initiative allows users to view the “crypto sentiment” of members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.
At the time of publication, the initiative’s landing page featured Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Brad Sherman as “strongly against” crypto policies, and Reps. Josh Gottheimer, Ritchie Torres and David Schweikert as “very supportive.” Warren has often suggested that crypto is linked to illicit activities, such as facilitating the fentanyl trade in China, while Torres called on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to limit its enforcement cases concerning crypto firms.
According to the Stand with Crypto information page, Schweikert has backed three pro-crypto bills during his time in office and made four statements referencing digital assets. The alliance included the disclaimer that “Members of Congress may have views you strongly agree or disagree with” but did not explicitly mention any non-crypto policy stances.
Earlier this week, bipartisan Blockchain Caucus co-chairs @RepTomEmmer @RepBillFoster @RepDarrenSoto and I, sent a letter to the House of Representatives concerning the Bipartisan Senate Infrastructure Bill being funded by our crypto currency industry. pic.twitter.com/duEHPzD5gu
— Rep. David Schweikert (@RepDavid) August 11, 2021
In 2020, the House Ethics Committee fined Schweikert $50,000 for violations of campaign finance that broke House ethics rules. In 2022, the Federal Election Commission fined the Arizona representative $125,000 for related allegations. The violations centered around a failure to report loans and using campaign funds for personal matters. Cointelegraph reached out to Schweikert’s office for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
Related: Crypto adoption crosses party lines amid Washington’s political deadlock
Among the donations the Stand with Crypto Alliance had received at the time of publication included more than $215 from a crypto user with the X (formerly Twitter) handle “Jerry Mander” — a play on words of gerrymander, the process of manipulating district boundaries to favor a certain political party. There was also a $191.98 donation from an unverified account that may belong to Roger Bartlett, Coinbase’s head of institutional operations solutions and Coinbase Treasury.
The political initiative was the latest in Coinbase’s policy of calling for crypto users to “elect pro-crypto candidates” in the United States. The exchange is currently facing a lawsuit from the SEC over allegedly unregistered securities offerings, with many lawmakers and industry advocates calling for the regulator to dismiss the case.
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Magazine: Opinion: GOP crypto maxis almost as bad as Dems’ ‘anti-crypto army’
Donald Trump has reignited his row with London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan after calling him a “nasty person” who has done “a terrible job”.
During an hour-long news conference with Sir Keir Starmer in Scotland, the US president hit out at the Labour mayor, who has responded with his own snipey remarks.
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Asked if he would visit London during his state visit in September, Mr Trump said: “I will, I’m not a fan of your mayor, I think he’s done a terrible job.
“A nasty person, I think.”
The prime minister then interrupted and said: “He’s a friend of mine.”
But the president added: “I think he’s done a terrible job but I will certainly visit London, I hope so.”
Sir Sadiq’s spokesperson then released a statement saying: “Sadiq is delighted that President Trump wants to come to the greatest city in the world.
“He’d see how our diversity makes us stronger not weaker; richer, not poorer.
“Perhaps these are the reasons why a record number of Americans have applied for British citizenship under his presidency.”
Sir Sadiq Khan was knighted in June. Pic: PA
They noted that Sir Sadiq has won three mayoral elections, including when Mr Trump lost the US election in 2020.
This is not the first time Mr Trump and Sir Sadiq have locked horns.
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The PM told Mr Trump that Sir Sadiq is a friend of his – seen here laying wreaths for the anniversary of the 7/7 bombings. Pic: PA
During his first presidential term, Mr Trump called the London mayor a “stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London”.
Sir Sadiq then described Mr Trump as a “poster boy for racists”.
And in November 2024, after Mr Trump won his second term, Sir Sadiq said many Londoners would be “fearful” about what it would “mean for democracy”.
However, as Sir Keir tried to show diplomacy with Mr Trump after becoming PM, Sir Sadiq said he “wanted to work closely with the American president” ahead of his inauguration in January.
The London mayor said as somebody “who believes in democracy, and voting and elections, we should recognise the fact that Donald Trump is the elected president of the United States”.
But he added: “Let’s keep our fingers crossed that this president is different from the last time he was president.”
The SEC delayed decisions on the Truth Social Bitcoin ETF and Grayscale’s Solana Trust, extending review periods as the US Congress moves with crypto regulation.
The US House of Representatives will be in recess for the month of August, but the Senate still has a week of business to address two crypto bills before breaking.
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