FOX Business' Charlie Gasparino talks about the crypto industry's efforts to stop SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw from getting a second term on “The Claman Countdown.”
Crypto industry seeks to block Carolyn Crenshaw's re-nomination to the Securities and Exchange Commission as the Senate Banking Committee prepares to vote on her second term as Wall Street's top regulator We are strengthening our energetic efforts.
Crenshaw, a Democrat, was appointed to the commission by then-President Trump in 2020 and nominated by Biden. If passed by the Banking Committee on Wednesday morning and later approved by the full Senate, he would be eligible to serve until June 2029.
Anti-Crenshaw lobbying has been public on social media, with crypto industry leaders condemning Crenshaw's alleged anti-crypto history and threatening her future if lawmakers vote to confirm her. It warns that there may be political repercussions. A coordinated digital and mobile ad campaign has been launched around Washington, D.C., and industry advocacy groups have sent a letter to Senate banking leadership expressing opposition to his reconfirmation.
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Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner candidate Caroline Crenshaw at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, July 11, 2024 in Washington, DC. Christie Gold named by Biden administration to lead Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (Getty Images)
With eight days left until Congress adjourns, Crenshaw's vote, scheduled for Wednesday at 9:45 a.m. EDT, will continue to fulfill the mandate voters gave Trump and Congress to return the SEC to professional status. Republicans say it's a last-ditch effort by Democrats to undermine their innovation, pro-business agenda, including establishing a regulatory framework for digital assets. Republicans will remain in the minority until the next legislative session begins in January.
Tim Scott, Republican of South Carolina and ranking member of the committee, said in a statement: “This 11th-hour push by Democrats to force their way through President Biden's nominees is an attempt to thwart President Trump's policies. “This is a blatant attempt to do so.”
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CHARLESTON, SC – FEBRUARY 16: Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) speaks at the Charleston County Republican Black History Month Dinner on February 16, 2023 in Charleston, South Carolina. Scott talked about growing up in South Carolina. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images/Getty Images)
The problem for crypto investors is that Crenshaw supports SEC Chairman Gary Gensler's stricter oversight of the $3 trillion digital asset industry. They also object to her characterization of the cryptocurrency market as a “petri dish of fraud” and her opposition to the committee's approval of Wall Street's Bitcoin Spot exchange-traded fund.
“Caroline Crenshaw is disqualified as SEC Commissioner and should be voted out,” Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said in a post on his X account Friday night. Ta. “She tried to block Bitcoin ETFs, but she was worse than Gensler on some issues (I didn't think that was possible).”
In the same post, Armstrong said the crypto community will be closely monitoring the Senate Banking Committee's vote and that Crenshaw's support could negatively impact the senator's reputation on the high-profile “Stand with Crypto.” added that it may have an impact rating scalea service created by Coinbase-affiliated advocacy groups that rates politicians on their support for crypto-friendly laws.
Such valuations will be politically sensitive in the 2024 election cycle, as the crypto industry's political clout has grown over the past year with significant increases in the value of digital assets that have become seed money for campaign coffers. It will have important meaning. High valuations correlate with more campaign money flowing from crypto super PACs such as FairShake to various candidates, while low valuations often indicate that PACs oppose anti-crypto candidates. or spend money on attack ads supporting the opposition.
For example, Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, became a target of crypto industry political spending when FairShake spent $40 million supporting Republican challenger Bernie Moreno. Moreno succeeded in unseating Brown, who had held the seat since 2007.
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Meanwhile, the nonprofit Cedar Innovation Foundation, an industry advocacy group that advocates for the advancement of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology, on Monday launched a five-figure mobile advertising campaign in Washington, D.C. and across social media platforms, naming Crenshaw as ” More anti-cryptocurrency.'' Gensler,” he said, noting that Gensler opposes the Bitcoin ETF he approved by voting in favor.
On Monday, CEOs of industry groups Blockchain Association and DeFi Education Fund said: joint letter To the Senate Banking leadership opposing Crenshaw's reconfirmation.
“Congress has a clear mandate from the American people to establish sound and reasonable crypto-related policies,” they wrote. “Unfortunately, Director Crenshaw's tenure at the SEC was marked by conduct that appears to be inconsistent with this charge.”
Mr. Crenshaw has worked with Mr. Gensler on progressive regulatory initiatives such as climate change disclosure rules aimed at forcing publicly traded companies to disclose metrics on their carbon footprint, but he is at odds with Republican lawmakers. It has also caused friction, with Mr. Gensler's agency arguing that it has overstepped and deviated from its parliamentary duties. social issues such as climate change;
It's unclear how effective the crypto lobby will be in blocking Crenshaw's nomination. If all Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee appear Wednesday morning and vote for her, they will have the majority needed to send her to the Senate for a vote.
New York Democrat Chuck Schumer, who plans to cede the Senate Majority Leader's seat to South Dakota's John Thune next year, is working on a continuing resolution to maintain government funding of $895 billion for defense. , the Senate could hold a unanimous vote against Crenshaw next week. Senate officials spoke to Fox Business about the bill's passage and votes for Biden's numerous judicial nominees.
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Given all the considerations, it's unclear whether Schumer would prioritize a vote on extending Crenshaw's term even if he were removed from the committee, these people added.
A spokesperson for Schumer had no immediate comment.
