The Winklevoss brothers, crypto moguls, join Trump's camp to blast Biden

Author: 0xjs, Golden Finance

On June 21, 2024, Gemini co-founders Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss each donated $1 million worth of Bitcoin (15.47 BTC) to the Trump campaign and publicly stated that they would vote for Trump in the upcoming U.S. election in November.

Tyler Winklevoss also published a lengthy article criticizing the Biden administration's crypto policies and explaining why he supports Trump.

Cameron Winklevoss and I have just donated $1 million worth of Bitcoin (15.47 BTC) to Donald Trump and will vote for him in November.

The reasons are as follows:

In recent years, the Biden administration has openly declared war on cryptocurrency. It has weaponized multiple government agencies to bully, harass, and prosecute the outstanding participants in our industry, attempting to destroy it. The actions of this administration amount to an unprecedented abuse of power, entirely for twisted political gain, at the expense of innovation, American taxpayers, and the U.S. economy. The Biden administration can do or say nothing now to pretend otherwise.

Some dark points of the Biden administration include:

Weaponizing the banking system against cryptocurrency companies and their leaders

This is colloquially known as "Operation Choke Point 2.0." The OCC (the federal agency responsible for licensing and regulating national banks) and the FDIC (the federal agency that provides deposit insurance for banks) provide "guidance" behind the scenes, instructing banks not to provide banking services to cryptocurrency companies. Any bank that does not comply with these orders faces threats.

The conversation generally goes like this: "Your bank is quite nice. It would be unfortunate if something happened because you provided banking services to some cryptocurrency companies." If this strategy is not enough to intimidate a bank, examiners will be sent in to turn everything upside down. This will almost certainly lead to some "discoveries"—tell me this bank, and I will tell you its crimes—resulting in hefty fines or new regulatory rules and conditions that undermine the bank's operational capacity. The risks are simply too great. Banks can choose not to provide banking services to cryptocurrency companies or let the banks make that choice for them.

These agencies have god-like power over banks because they can revoke a bank's license or federal deposit insurance (FDIC) at any time under the guise of "safety and soundness." This is why they can act like characters from "The Godfather," intimidating banks into abandoning any clients or client groups they want. This completely legal but ideologically unwelcome practice of banking this industry began during the Obama administration when President Joe Biden served as vice president. It was then known as "Operation Choke Point 1.0," a documented stain during President Obama's term. The Biden administration has revived this strategy and is aggressively targeting the cryptocurrency industry.

The crackdown has expanded from cryptocurrency companies to individuals working in the cryptocurrency industry. Personally, I have lost multiple bank accounts because I own cryptocurrency through my investment firm, Winklevoss Capital.

SEC's weaponization against cryptocurrency

The SEC under the Biden administration has not established any rules for the crypto industry to help any participants understand how to navigate the regulatory environment for this new asset paradigm. This is by design.

By not establishing any new rules for cryptocurrency, the SEC can dishonestly claim that existing rules—based on a 1946 Supreme Court ruling regarding a Florida orange grove, issued 50 years before most households had telephones and before the commercial internet existed—apply for the purpose. But that is not the case.

For example, if ETH is a security (which was still an open question 48 hours ago), then if you send ETH from your smartphone to a friend's smartphone, you would be violating securities laws. Why? Because only broker-dealers are allowed to transfer securities. And they can only transfer securities to another broker-dealer. From this example alone, anyone can understand how classifying a cryptocurrency like ETH as a security would undermine its utility and destroy its ability to unlock a decentralized future. It's like asking a car to perform like a horse. Yet, this is the position the Biden SEC has taken on nearly all cryptocurrencies. It does so not because it is unaware of the consequences but because it is fully aware. This is precisely the outcome it desires. To eliminate cryptocurrency.

By taking the absurd position that nearly every cryptocurrency is a security, the SEC under the Biden administration provides itself with the rationale and full authority to sue any cryptocurrency project or company in the U.S. The game is simple. Make compliance impossible, then sue everyone who does not comply. This is exactly what the Biden SEC has repeatedly done to the good actors in the field. The SEC will not establish rules for cryptocurrency—this could be done in a matter of days—while years later, judges and juries will establish rules that they believe the SEC's actions were malicious and always wrong. The time and economic waste will be enormous. Harm will be done. But that is the point.

The Biden administration has polluted the mission of these agencies, undermining their integrity. They are all led by unelected bureaucrats appointed by President Biden, executing his orders. The moral compass of these officials is political interest, and their higher mission is political power. Congress never granted them the statutory authority to determine the fate of the cryptocurrency industry or any other legitimate industry in America; they are wholly unqualified to act as gatekeepers of our nation's economic life. That is the role of the market.

However, the cryptocurrency industry is not the only industry treated this way

The Biden administration has been waging a full-scale attack on American businesses, demonizing its greatest heroes. The crime is always success, and the reward is always ridicule, fines, and even more red tape. But it is essential to clarify that the Biden administration does not entirely hate success. They only hate success that is not under their control. Once they figure out how to confiscate or coerce these assets, the Biden administration will be enthusiastic about success, eagerly manipulating or redistributing these assets in obvious ways to buy votes. Over a long enough time frame, it is easy to see how these policies will lead to the destruction of our economy and country.

Capitalism elevates people. If allowed to develop properly, it is the greatest creator of wealth and prosperity in history and the only economic system capable of achieving all this peacefully while preserving the freedom and dignity of every participant. Under certain conditions—such as anyone being able to start a company, open a bank account to accept customer payments, and operate in the open market without government interference—innovation and wealth creation will flourish infinitely. Remove any one of those cornerstones, and you will get a completely different system with entirely different results. This is precisely what the Biden administration has done to the cryptocurrency industry and many other industries in America. It has been dismantling our economic way of life and the system that has made America the greatest country in the world. And it does so entirely for its power, control, and political ambition.

Among all capitalist experiments, America is the greatest. I have witnessed and experienced this many times. Gemini is a crypto platform that Cameron and I founded in 2014, evolving from an idea on a napkin into a company that has employed thousands of people and helped millions of customers access cryptocurrency over the past decade. Some employees have tearfully thanked me because their work at Gemini allowed them to buy homes for their families. Some customers have approached me on the street to thank me for creating Gemini because it helped them achieve financial freedom and start their own businesses. It is these experiences that bring me the greatest joy and give meaning to everything we do at Gemini.

The Biden administration is trying to destroy all of this. I will not stand by and let them do it. I will continue to fight for what I believe is right. President Donald Trump is the choice for supporting Bitcoin, supporting cryptocurrency, and supporting business. This is not even up for debate. Anyone who tells you otherwise is seriously misled, delusional, or not telling the truth. It is time to take back our country. It is time for the crypto army to send a message to Washington. Attacking us is political suicide.

That is why I will vote for President Trump in November, and I hope you will too. Forward!