If you weren’t there in person, it would be hard to describe how long and drawn out the line was to see Donald Trump speak at the Bitcoin conference. The wait to get through security and find a seat in the auditorium was long, with thousands of people jostling for seats in the Nakamoto Theater early in the day. As the line stretched across the exhibit hall, it was easy to see an even distribution of Bitcoin supporters and Trump supporters (some were both) all eager to hear Trump speak. There was excitement in the air, and while I didn’t share in the excitement, it permeated the air in Nashville. Uber drivers were quick to point out that Trump was speaking at the conference. All over town, large posters of Trump’s face were hung next to Bitcoin symbols advertising the conference. Trump mania certainly took over the conference, but it also seemed to take over the city of Nashville.
I can’t deny that getting Donald Trump to speak at a Bitcoin conference during an election year was a “big deal.” It’s a big moment for Bitcoin, and we should all, in a sense, appreciate this development as an accomplishment that we as Bitcoin fans can all be proud of. Trump’s speech promised to push Bitcoin into the mainstream political conversation and thus normalize a rising digital currency that most people still see as “fake internet money.” It was a moment we were all meant to remember for the rest of our lives; it was Bitcoin’s chance to be part of serious conversations being had by serious people.
Had Trump shown up for his speech on time, we would have known an hour ago that it wouldn’t happen. Instead, we waited. And once Trump began his speech, it didn’t take long for us to realize that people who had been waiting for hours all day had been sold a bill of goods. Trump’s speech was a rambling, at times incoherent rambling, with a few small nods to cryptocurrencies and… I think… Bitcoin. The first mention of Bitcoin came about six and a half minutes into his remarks. I don’t blame Trump for talking more about crypto than Bitcoin; most politicians do. But as he spoke at the Bitcoin conference, I expected him to spend more time discussing Bitcoin than his genius uncle who worked at MIT. Unfortunately, sometimes you just can’t lower the bar enough.
The most obvious takeaway from hearing Trump talk about Bitcoin was the unsurprising realization that Robert Kennedy Jr. thought more deeply about Bitcoin while sipping his first cup of coffee each morning than Donald Trump has thought about Bitcoin in his entire life. All of Trump’s best moments during his speech (and there were some) were copied from Robert Kennedy Jr.’s keynote address the day before. The parts of the speech that he didn’t copy from Robert Kennedy Jr.’s were: rejecting, arrogant, Flattery And UninformedThe value in watching the speech at all is that the Bitcoin-friendly voters I keep hearing about now have an easy decision to make.
There are certainly plenty of Bitcoiners who love Trump and love his rhetoric. But there are also a surprising number of people who see this for what it is: a politician out to cash in on money and votes. And The Bitcoin community is insecure and exploiting some borrowed legitimacy. Having a prominent presidential candidate discuss Bitcoin has some positive effects, but the most serious people I know in this space also recognize that there are some risks and dangers involved as well. One of the main risks is that the Bitcoin community, by cozying up to Trump, risks alienating itself from the pre-coin crowd for the foreseeable future. I think this is a hard point to understand if you really like Bitcoin or you really like Trump. Try to remember that most people don’t fall into either category.
I’ve been in the Bitcoin space publicly long enough to recognize the massive cognitive dissonance that exists among many Bitcoiners. Some of these people are libertarians who are absolutely committed to individual freedom, but are unwilling to respect a person’s sexual identity. Some of these people are conservatives who want to see government shrink while the same government censors which books are banned and what healthcare people are allowed to receive. Some of these people are Bitcoiners who want to see government separate from the financial system while loudly cheering for a politician who promises to buy Bitcoin on behalf of the U.S. government. If I can see the cognitive dissonance, why is it so hard for a community that prides itself on being unconventional, skeptical, and distrustful of verification?
I take it as a personal responsibility to help as many people as I can, and I’ve been serious about doing that. That means I want to expose 57% of Americans Those who don’t like Trump see Bitcoin as a force for good in this world; my job is hard and since Nashville, it’s gotten harder. Let’s be real: Bitcoin is the perfect combination of “internet” and “money” that should make anyone skeptical. There’s no shortage of FUD denouncing Bitcoin as fake money, a scam, a Ponzi scheme, or money for criminals. Bitcoin experts may not be worried about any of that, but those who know the currency beforehand are certainly aware of its reputation. If my job is to convince them to take a second look, that becomes even harder when Bitcoin experts are quick to align themselves with a well-known company. con artist, Womanizer, scamAnd convicted criminal.
Bitcoin will undoubtedly attract its share of scammers, adulterers, con artists, and criminals. So will Bitcoin. But let’s not give in and rebrand Bitcoin as Trumpism. That’s simply bad marketing. The most compelling argument I’ve heard in support of seeking Trump’s endorsement is that it will force other politicians to support Bitcoin, and that his policies will force other countries to take Bitcoin seriously. That may prove to be true, but the opposite is also likely to happen. It will be easy for non-cryptophiles, if they’re paying attention at all, to pit “scam” Bitcoin against “scam” Trump, walk away, and sleep easy. Trump, meanwhile, will have no real affinity for Bitcoin after the votes are counted.
After all this effort to ensure that Bitcoin is not biased toward any one party or two or any other political orientation, it was our community (which is actually a small group of influential and connected Bitcoin users) that sought to forge an alliance with the most polarizing political figure in generations. It would be a very different story if Trump had found Bitcoin on his own. But that’s not the point.We made this unforced error ourselves, or rather, we allowed the leaders in our leaderless movement to make the error on our behalf.
I can hear you screaming, “Well, what solution do you want? Vote for others?!” Fair question. Here’s my solution: Step away from the politicians and go to the voters. Meet them where they are and teach them how Bitcoin solves the problems they care about. That’s it, really. The rest will take care of itself. Pick a low time preference and it will happen from the ground up, without having to sacrifice your principles. This is the best way to promote Bitcoin adoption, protect the marginalized people Bitcoin can help, and attract policymakers who truly care deeply about Bitcoin and shun “crypto.” If you can get through to the politicians, advocate for self-custodial protections, a low tax rate so Bitcoin can be easily spent, and consumer protections for exchanges and brokerages.
For those who think Trump is now one of us, he is not. He will abandon our community the moment he serves it, and we will be worse off for it. Look at it from a broader perspective. A week after Trump appeared in Nashville, he sat for an hour and a half. Disastrous interview He was a member of the National Association of Black Journalists. But that didn’t make him a black journalist. And his appearance in Nashville didn’t make him a Bitcoin supporter. We would all do well to remember that.
This is a guest post by Jason Meyer. The opinions expressed here are entirely his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of BTC Inc or Investor Empires