United States Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) recently praised Bitcoin in an interview with Natalie Brunell from Hard Money. This comes at a crossroads moment in time–as many Americans are concerned about inflation, national debt and the fate of the US dollar.
Inflation Viewed as a Major Concern
Lummis isn’t alone. According to the Pew Research Center, the American public views inflation (70%) as the top problem in the U.S., followed by health care affordability (55%) and violent crime (54%).
“I love that it can’t be stopped especially because I’m concerned about our national debt,” said Lummis. “I’m concerned about inflation.”
Inflation has been steadily rising since September 2021 (5.4)–reaching its peak in June 2022 (9.1%). In July 2022, inflation for food reached 11.4%, the highest since 1979; electricity rose to 15.8%, the most since August 1981; and gasoline costs hit 25.6%.
Senator Lummis acknowledges this growing concern and notes, “I see people in my home state of Wyoming that are going to food banks now because they need fuel, they need gasoline to get to their jobs, and they have to choose now between high-priced gasoline and food.”
Senator Lummis: The Crypto Queen
Lummis first bought Bitcoin in 2013 and reported in October 2021 that it was worth somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000. Known on Capitol Hill as the “Crypto Queen,” Lummis was the first person in the Senate to own crypto. She has also become a crypto educator in Congress–informing her peers about the long-term advantages of digital assets.
The point is that Senator Lummis is an outlier in Congress: she owns, understands and holds the power to police cryptocurrency in our nation’s capital. This is why those in the crypto industry took notice–she has the credibility.
“So when we see things that are inflationary, when we see the value of a dollar drop when you go to the grocery store and you come out with one sack of food and used to for the same price come out with two, we really need to look at assets that are going to be there for the long term,” said Lummis. “That’s why, to me, it’s actually comforting to know that Bitcoin is there.”
Lummis & Co. Introduces Bill
Lummis, alongside Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), introduced a bill titled “Lummis-Gillibrand Responsible Financial Innovation Act” in June. The bill demonstrates how to classify digital assets–commodities or securities–and determines which agency should regulate them.
The bill reads, “Digital assets that meet the definition of a commodity, such as Bitcoin and ether, which comprise more than half of digital asset market capitalization, will be regulated by the CFTC.”
The bill has not yet been passed and it could still be a while. Should the bill become law, the U.S. could instantly bypass its competitors and become the world leader in cryptocurrency.
“This is a very comprehensive piece of legislation, probably too comprehensive given the time remaining in 2022 for the bill to pass,” said Lummis. “But what that does is give us more time to get more input on the bill, and we want to embrace that. We want people to provide additional input and ideas and thoughts.”
To further emphasize the Senator’s praise for Bitcoin, “Bitcoin is something the government cannot take.”
