{"id":14728,"date":"2020-01-22T00:29:41","date_gmt":"2020-01-22T00:29:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mediashower.com\/blog\/?p=14728"},"modified":"2020-01-22T00:29:41","modified_gmt":"2020-01-22T00:29:41","slug":"the-dollar-defenders-vs-the-bitcoin-believers-the-blockchain-battle-on-capitol-hill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/the-dollar-defenders-vs-the-bitcoin-believers-the-blockchain-battle-on-capitol-hill\/","title":{"rendered":"The Dollar Defenders vs. The Bitcoin Believers: The Blockchain Battle on Capitol Hill"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>What a time in history!<\/p>\n<p>Whether it is the <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/9-ZTkCNW0w8\">United States House talking about Satoshi Nakamoto<\/a> or seeing the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/realdonaldtrump\/status\/1149472284702208000\">President tweeting about cryptocurrency<\/a>, it feels like blockchain has finally gone mainstream. If we were surfers, it\u2019s like we\u2019ve all been on our surfboards for the past few years, just waiting for the perfect wave\u2014and in 2019, it finally came rolling in.<\/p>\n<p>We also witnessed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/07\/16\/technology\/facebook-libra-congress.html?module=inline\">U.S. Senate Banking Committee<\/a>, as well as the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/07\/17\/technology\/facebook-libra-house-hearing.html\">House Banking Committee<\/a>, grill Facebook executive David Marcus on the plans for Libra, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitcoinmarketjournal.com\/facebook-coin\/\">new digital money hatched at Facebook<\/a>. Marcus endured hours of relentless interrogation, and he held up like a champ.<\/p>\n<p><center><br \/>\n<iframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9-ZTkCNW0w8\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/center><\/p>\n<p>The government\u2019s concerns boil down to one central problem: <strong>digital currencies threaten the global power of the U.S. dollar.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This is a new era in U.S. politics, with both parties coming together to either support or oppose digital currencies. Both the far left and far right believe in individual and personal freedom: they are largely bitcoin believers. Those who want to maintain the existing system \u2013 conservatives, liberals, and moderates \u2013 are largely opposed.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, we have found a cause that unites our political parties. (Is there anything blockchain can\u2019t do?)<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s divide United States politicians into two new \u201csupergroups,\u201d which we\u2019ll call the <strong>Blockchain Believers<\/strong> (in support of decentralized digital currencies), and the <strong>Dollar Defenders<\/strong> (who want to maintain centralized control).<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s a sampling of their thoughts as they put the new Libra digital money under the microscope.<\/p>\n<h2>The Dollar Defenders (Opposed to Digital Money)<\/h2>\n<p><center><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"fr-fir fr-dii alignleft\" style=\"width: 384px; height: 301.056px;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/img\/56AE60AA-1788-11EA-9396-28BEA1299728\/Screen Shot 2019-12-05 at 19.00.46_600x.jpg\" alt=\"Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer\" width=\"600\" height=\"470\" \/><br \/>\n<\/center><\/p>\n<p>It was Missouri Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO) who most clearly defended the status quo: \u201cYou said that the current [financial] system is not working \u2026 <strong>I think the current system IS working<\/strong>. The system right now works because it\u2019s like traffic control.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The key word in this sentence is \u201ccontrol.\u201d Centralized governments want to control a centralized currency. The question is how centralized governments control a <em>decentralized<\/em> currency, which Libra ultimately aims to become.<\/p>\n<p>Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) went so far as to say, \u201cI don\u2019t think you should launch Libra at all. <strong>The creation of a new currency is a core government function.<\/strong>\u201d She was joined by her fellow Congresswoman Nydia Vel\u00e1zquez (D-NY), who said: \u201cWe want to make sure that companies [like Libra] \u2026 could not threaten the U.S. financial system.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The two New York congresswomen called on Marcus to stop Libra until they could figure everything out. \u201cThis is not Silicon Valley,\u201d Vel\u00e1zquez pointed out. \u201cYou cannot work out problems as you go.\u201d (Did the United States work out all <em>its<\/em> problems before it launched?)<\/p>\n<p>It was Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA) who said it most clearly. \u201cAmerica\u2019s power comes from the power of the dollar more than the power of our military \u2026 Cross-border transmission? Let\u2019s do that, in dollars!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In other words: <em>defend the dollar.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>The Blockchain Believers (Open to Digital Money)<\/h2>\n<p><center><br \/>\n<strong><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"fr-dii fr-fir alignright\" style=\"width: 383px; height: 300.929px;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/img\/56AE60AA-1788-11EA-9396-28BEA1299728\/Screen Shot 2019-12-05 at 19.01.48_600x.jpg\" alt=\"Congressman Patrick McHenry\" width=\"600\" height=\"472\" \/><\/strong><br \/>\n<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Patrick McHenry (R-NC) gave the most impassioned and intelligent response to Libra. \u201cWashington must ensure that it\u2019s not the place where innovation goes to die. Just because we may not understand a new technology proposal does not mean we should immediately call for its prohibition.\u201d He pointed out that the genie is out of the bottle: \u201cThe reality is that whether Facebook is involved or not, change is here. Digital currencies exist. Blockchain technology is real.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe should not attempt to deter this innovation,\u201d he went on. \u201cAnd governments cannot stop this innovation. And those that try have already failed. Instead of a kneejerk reaction of banning something before it begins, my colleagues and I want to try to first understand it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sean Duffy (R-WI) called Libra \u201cabsolutely brilliant. Innovative, creative \u2026 and pretty amazing.\u201d He went even further, arguing that Libra should be open to everyone, just like a $20 bill. It should \u201cbehave like a fiat currency,\u201d he proclaimed, holding up a $20 bill to make his point. \u201cThe freedom and liberty that comes with the $20 bill,\u201d he went on, \u201cI think you should offer the same freedom and liberty on your [Libra] network.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Steve Stiver (R-OH) understood the promise of global money: \u201cThe value I see in this innovation is cross-border payments, because that\u2019s so expensive today. About 60% of the world\u2019s population lives in a country that does not have a stable currency.\u201d (Not sure about his math there.) \u201cHelping the unbanked and helping people with cross-border payments \u2026 I appreciate the innovation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Finally, it was French Hill (R-AR) who articulated the blockchain philosophy in just three words: \u201cTrust, but verify.\u201d He even held up a coffee mug with this slogan on it.<\/p>\n<h2>Trust but Verify<\/h2>\n<p>But it was Andy Barr (R-KY) who actually talked about financial inclusion, which is the problem that Libra is reportedly trying to solve. \u201cI think we should presume that innovation is good, that it presents enormous opportunity for financial inclusion,\u201d he concluded. \u201cI think that the opportunity for financial inclusion with Project Libra is enormous and very positive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This is what our elected politicians should be doing: figuring out the biggest problems facing society, and discussing possible solutions. I can\u2019t tell you whether Libra will actually become global money that helps the unbanked. But I can tell you that financial inclusion is a problem \u2013 one-fifth of the world is unbanked \u2013 and only global money will lead to global inclusion. One money for one world.<\/p>\n<p>Trusting, but verifying. Now that you\u2019ve verified their stances, which side do you trust?<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitcoinmarketjournal.com\/join\/?__mscta=2372_77537_10247\"><em>Sign up here<\/em><\/a><em>\u00a0to get more blockchain intelligence and insight in our free weekly newsletter.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><!-- Media Shower Impressions --><\/p>\n<div class=\"ms_article_id\" style=\"display: none;\" data-ms-article-id=\"80033\"><\/div>\n<p><!-- \/Media Shower Impressions --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What a time in history! Whether it is the United States House talking about Satoshi Nakamoto or seeing the President tweeting about cryptocurrency, it feels like blockchain has finally gone mainstream. If we were surfers, it\u2019s like we\u2019ve all been on our surfboards for the past few years, just waiting for the perfect wave\u2014and in<span>&#8230;  <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/the-dollar-defenders-vs-the-bitcoin-believers-the-blockchain-battle-on-capitol-hill\/\">Read More&#8230;<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":14729,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[459],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14728"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14728"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14728\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14734,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14728\/revisions\/14734"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}