TRUMP coin could risk national security – US lawmakers

A Democrat who is also the California Representative, Maxine Waters, has come after Republican lawmakers. She warned that President Donald Trump’s memecoin TRUMP could potentially open the door to corruption and risks to national security.

At a meeting held on January 22, the US House Financial Services Committee discussed rules and plans for the 119th session of Congress. Maxine Waters expressed concern that the Republicans’ plan, since they control the House of Representatives, did not include monitoring of crypto companies and other financial institutions.

Ranking Member @RepMaxineWaters' statement on $TRUMP meme coin: "This Represents the Worst of Crypto" | https://t.co/3UH4Ec1ZIo pic.twitter.com/PoyfcMOus1

— U.S. House Committee on Financial Services (@FSCDems) January 20, 2025

Water expressed that there are several mentions in the plan about how the Committee will review the polices by the previous administration to protect US citizens. However, “the plan is notably silent about reviewing the actions taken by the current President, including potential conflicts of interest that may put our national security at risk,” she said.

“Hours before Trump took office, he and his family launched meme coins that have shot up in value, reportedly increasing his personal wealth and possibly providing a backdoor for sanctioned persons, hostile governments, and other bad actors to give money to Trump directly,”

Waters noted.

This was expected and much so by the democrats. However, generally part of the crypto industry is also not in support of the president’s primary attachment to the crypto market. Still, part of the market feels safe to have the president in the industry.

TRUMP memecoin faces criticism from the crypto industry

The same people who were looking forward to a pro-crypto president seem as though they wanted him to be for them without necessarily being involved. In fact, Tom Schmidt, a partner at a crypto venture capital firm Dragonfly said, “I really was kind of bummed out when I saw it […] It just felt very grifty and cheap.”

In addition, some crypto fans even joked on social media that they missed Gary Gensler, the recently retired chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). He was regarded as the Biden administration’s primary crypto enemy. This was due to the SEC’s strong enforcement operations against crypto companies.

The crypto industry worry stems from the fact that because the president associating himself so closely with meme coins it could hurt his ability to enact reforms.

Nic Carter, a Trump supporter and partner at the crypto investment firm Castle Island Ventures explained, “Now, on the cusp of getting some liberalization of crypto regulations in this country, the main thing people are thinking about crypto is, “Oh, it’s just a casino for these meme coins […] It does the opposite of validating us, it makes it look completely unserious.”

However, the Trump family business recently released an ethics agreement that prohibits Trump from “day-to-day” decision making at the Trump Organization. This applies when he’s president and limits financial information about the business shared with him.

Meanwhile, Trump selected SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda as the agency’s acting chief on Tuesday. Uyeda announced the formation of a new crypto task force to steer the SEC toward a “sensible regulatory path.” 

Democrats want oversight for financial institutions under Trump’s government

Maxine Waters raised a concern that the Republicans had left out a plan to oversee big banks, Wall Street firms, crypto companies and countless other financial institutions. 

She also mentioned the number of tech billionaires and CEOs who attended Trump’s inauguration at the US Capitol Building on January 20. She worries that there would be favouritism in the government.

In the same light she argued that everyone deserves a safe, affordable, and decent place to live. In addition she said that the economy should work for all, and a financial system that no longer benefits Wall Street at the expense of Main Street.

“It was not lost on the American public that when Trump moved his inauguration inside there were only a few seats available to attend, but the Billionaire Boys Club all got one,” Waters said. “Mr. Chairman, the mega billionaires like co-President Elon Musk who rode Trump’s coattails are salivating at the thought of looting our country. They would love nothing more than for this Committee and Congress to turn a blind eye to what they are doing.”

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