Democrat Ro Khanna, a member of the US House of Representatives, has introduced a draft resolution proposing a comprehensive bill aimed at preventing politicians and public officials from engaging in crypto assets.
Khanna explained his proposal by saying, “No one should hold an elected office to profit from their position.”
Khanna’s proposed draft resolution states that the president, vice president, members of Congress, elected public officials, and their immediate family members should not issue, support, or endorse any digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, memecoins, stablecoins, NFTs, digital trading cards, and DeFi platforms.
It also argues that elected officials and candidates should be required to transfer their digital assets into inaccessible “blind trusts” during their term and for two years after leaving office. The bill also seeks to support legislation that would require politicians and their families to provide timely and complete disclosure of all cryptocurrency transactions.
Khanna’s proposal directly targets the digital asset activities of US President Donald Trump and his family. The draft alleges that the Trump family “has used their names and likenesses to establish an opaque and largely unregulated network of crypto ventures.” The document states that these projects include tools such as digital trading cards, memecoins, stablecoins, and DeFi platforms.
According to the text of the decision, Trump “used his influence to increase the value of his own crypto ventures by using his authority and access.” It also alleges that foreign investments have flowed into Trump-linked crypto projects.
The bill also criticizes Trump’s recent presidential pardon of Binance founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao. The White House, in a statement, said Trump was “exercising his constitutional authority” and accused the Biden administration of waging an “anti-crypto war.”
“The Biden administration attempted to sentence Zhao to three years in prison despite the absence of any allegations of fraud or victims. This extreme approach has damaged the image of the United States as a global leader in technology and innovation,” White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said.
Khanna’s bill appears unlikely to pass because Republicans hold the majority in the House.
*This is not investment advice.