Donald Trump, the former president of the United States, made headlines at an NFT gala on Wednesday, attracting a voter base that Joe Biden had completely ignored. However, despite his claims, Trump does not possess a deep understanding of cryptocurrency policy.
During his first term in office, Trump was not a fan of cryptocurrencies, once tweeting that they were “based on thin air.” He later sold NFTs worth millions of dollars. This week, he has rebranded himself as the preferred candidate in the crypto space.
“If you support cryptocurrency, you will vote for Trump because they want to end it,” he said at the Wednesday gala held at Mar-a-Lago, referring to the Democratic Party and President Joe Biden. He also pledged to accept cryptocurrency donations for his campaign.
This apparent shift from the 77-year-old candidate did not surprise his approximately 200 supporters. Many of them purchased $10,000 Trump Trading Card NFTs to attend the peculiar, sweltering outdoor reception held at the former president’s Florida palace. A CoinDesk journalist also attended the event as a companion.
During the nearly hour-long event, Trump answered questions from a sweating crowd of suit-clad attendees. Only a few questions focused on cryptocurrencies, the nominal theme of the entire event but a niche topic in reality.
However, a few things became clear:
1. Trump is not an expert on cryptocurrencies.
2. Trump is an expert at selling cryptocurrencies.
3. The first two points do not matter because Trump has declared himself a defender of cryptocurrencies.
One exchange highlighted points 1 and 3 (we’ll discuss point 2 later). When asked about his views on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and “government blockchains” (both of which are typically opposed by cryptocurrency enthusiasts), Trump responded, “I think everything has its place.” He went on to say, “We have some incredible things happening, I mean, look at cryptocurrency a few years ago, people said it would never work, and now it’s at record levels. I guess you could say it’s a form of currency, and I support that, I’m supporting it more and more.”
For the (likely small) subset of single-issue voters in this industry, the substance of Trump’s support for cryptocurrencies may not be important. What matters is that he made positive statements about it. Trump appears to be the first major-party presidential candidate to embrace cryptocurrencies.
Blasting Biden
In the political opposition, we see a president’s administration openly hostile to cryptocurrencies. Gary Gensler, the SEC chairman under Joe Biden, has launched legal actions against various aspects of the cryptocurrency industry. A few hours before his opponent (Trump) held his gala at the golf resort, the president promised to block attempts in the House to repeal a cryptocurrency accounting rule, a rule that political opponents claim has stifled the industry’s growth.
“Biden doesn’t even know what that is. If you ask Biden, ‘Sir, do you support or oppose cryptocurrency?’ He’ll say, ‘What’s that? Get me off the stage.’ He doesn’t know,” Trump said. Whether this seemingly reasonable assumption is true or not, Trump then attacked Gensler, the official who is knowledgeable about cryptocurrencies.
“What I say is, I’m fine with it, I want to make sure it’s good, solid, and everything else, but I’m fine with it,” Trump said when talking about cryptocurrencies. He later added, “If we’re going to have what we have right now, we’re going to have to accept a lot of things that not everyone likes.”
A few hours before Trump’s impromptu Q&A, Biden’s campaign team had attacked “those who were tricked into spending up to $10,000 on his simple digital pictures.” The email criticized Trump for not campaigning during the midweek recess but instead hosting a lavish NFT dinner.
But Trump did campaign on Wednesday night. He is courting the incredibly noisy cryptocurrency crowd that Biden has completely ignored. Of course, only a few hundred people heard his speech in person. The video of Trump endorsing cryptocurrencies has caused a stir on social media and led to extensive media coverage of the self-proclaimed political advocate for cryptocurrencies.
“The U.S. has 50 million cryptocurrency holders. That’s a lot of voters,” Ryan Selkis, CEO of cryptocurrency data platform Messari, claimed in the crowded banquet hall at Mar-a-Lago, where VIPs who bought $10,000 NFTs mingled with dinner attendees who paid $4,700. Trump surprisingly called Selkis to the stage.
Soundbites from Wednesday’s NFT feast may further polarize the cryptocurrency industry, tethering it to the “us vs. them” struggle plaguing American politics. Bitcoin’s libertarian roots barely resonate today; cryptocurrencies have supporters in both parties.
The most influential voice in Republican politics has ignored the bipartisan reality of cryptocurrencies, asserting that the Democrats want to kill it. “The Democrats are very much against it,” Trump said, referring to the 21 Democrats out of 213 who voted to repeal the SEC accounting rule in the House just hours earlier.
Trump positions himself as the industry’s only hope. His understanding of industry issues is sporadic. When asked how he would change the hostile U.S. policy of expelling cryptocurrency companies, he said, “We’re going to stop it because I don’t want that, I don’t want that. I want if we’re going to embrace it, we have to keep them here.”
“We made NFTs hot again”
Trump demonstrates some level of expertise in one area of cryptocurrency: his own NFTs. Trump’s three series of NFTs, depicting the digital trading cards of Super Donald in different patriotic states, have generated millions of dollars in sales. Wednesday’s dinner celebrated the big buyers of his “Mugshot Edition” third series.
“We did it when NFTs weren’t hot, and we made NFTs hot again,” Trump said about his trading cards. He added that some NFT buyers made tens of thousands of dollars on the resale market.
One attendee asked if he would release a fourth series of NFTs, to which the seasoned businessman hesitated. “I believe in supply and demand. As you know, 1 did well, 2 did well, 3 did well. Maybe at some point, it will reverse,” he said.
He took a vote from the audience: how many Mugshot holders wanted a fourth series of NFTs? Most people raised their hands. Trump sounded perplexed, “But according to supply and demand, wouldn’t this possibly keep the price of what you already purchased lower?” He tested their resolve. “Who doesn’t want to see a fourth series for that reason?” Only a few hands went up.
“Well, we have a few economists,” Trump said amidst laughter from the crowd.