The presumptive party nominees for president of the United States may mention digital assets on a debate stage for the first time in history.
U.S. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are scheduled to meet for a debate at CNN’s Atlanta studios at 9:00 pm ET on June 27. Assuming it goes forward, the debate would also mark one of the first times candidates bypassed the Commission on Presidential Debates to arrange a time and place on their terms.
Neither Biden nor Trump will have officially accepted the nominations to be the Democratic and Republican Party nominees for U.S. president at the time of the debate. Nevertheless, polls suggest that — barring an act of God or unforeseen circumstances — both candidates will likely be the major party nominees in the 2024 election.
Increasing rhetoric on crypto
Many crypto users said on social media channels that they expect crypto to be mentioned in the debate. Moderators Jake Tapper and Dana Bash could ask a related question, or one or both of the candidates might bring up the subject spontaneously — though there are rules in place to ensure Trump’s and President Biden’s microphones will be muted unless it’s their turn to speak.
After beating out other Republican candidates in favor of many pro-crypto policies, Trump announced his campaign would accept contributions in digital assets and planned to have all remaining Bitcoin mined in the United States. This position represented a significant change from the last time Trump faced then-former Vice President Biden on the debate stage in 2020.
While in office, Trump told his treasury secretary to “go after” Bitcoin (BTC) and called cryptocurrencies “not money” and “based on thin air.” Many experts have posited that the timing of the former president’s seeming “change of heart” on crypto suggested he may be employing it as a political tool and may not advocate for the technology if he wins reelection.
“What we’re seeing right now is, potentially, the first presidential debate where crypto comes up as a question,” said Anchorage Digital co-founder Diogo Mónica in a June 26 Bloomberg interview. “That would be amazing.”
Biden’s strategy on crypto
After taking office in January 2021, President Biden nominated Gary Gensler as chair of the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission. Many have criticized the SEC’s record of enforcement actions against crypto firms under Gensler, claiming that there were no clear rules of the road.
President Biden has also personally taken anti-crypto actions while in office. He signed an executive order to establish a regulatory framework on crypto and made statements criticizing digital assets’ energy consumption. In 2024, the U.S. president announced and followed through with a veto of a resolution to overturn an SEC accounting rule on banks and crypto.
However, recent reports have suggested that the U.S. president is exploring the possibility of accepting crypto contributions for his reelection campaign. He may also consider attending a roundtable with congressional leaders to discuss digital assets. Some experts have suggested that this approach may prove effective in contrast to Trump’s mercurial statements on non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and mining.
“The Biden campaign should aim to highlight President Biden’s professionalism in contrast to Trump’s antics,” Moe Vela, a former adviser to then-Vice President Biden, told Cointelegraph. “While it is unlikely that the moderators will address cryptocurrency in this first debate, they certainly should. Crypto is not only a significant economic and financial issue, but it also represents a large segment of millennial, Gen Z, and young professional voters. The outcome of this election could hinge on the crypto community.”
Related: Crypto voters could provide ‘key swing’ in 2024 US elections: CCI poll
Stand With Crypto, a cryptocurrency advocacy group launched by Coinbase, has started a campaign to ask CNN to include at least one question related to digital assets at the debate. The form stated:
“Giving the major Presidential candidates a chance to weigh in on this transformational technology in the first debate would go a long way towards educating the electorate and helping American crypto owners cast an informed ballot.”
Election Day in the United States will be on Nov. 5. Trump is also facing a sentencing hearing on July 11 following his conviction on 34 felony counts in New York. It’s unclear if the former U.S. president’s legal troubles — being found liable for sexual assault and fraud connected to his businesses, as well as the felony conviction — could affect his nomination at the Republican National Convention in July.
The Biden-Trump debate will last 90 minutes with two commercial breaks. There will not be a studio audience.
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