I, like lots of you, am processing the outcomes of the latest U.S. election by which Donald Trump gained handily each the electoral school and widespread vote. As pundits talk about, left mainstream media personalities mourn, and sure many Trump supporters cheer ecstatically, as a progressive Bitcoiner it’s fully clear to me: If the Democratic Celebration needs a future in America, it should embrace Bitcoin.
Let me clarify what I imply. Not solely do I believe is it crucial for the occasion to embrace Bitcoin if it needs to outlive, however after this decisive Trump victory, I believe many throughout the occasion, and people impartial voters who dip out and in of voting for democratic candidates, need to make a drastic change and return to the drafting board.
Bernie is again, and he has one thing to say.
It ought to come as no nice shock {that a} Democratic Celebration which has deserted working class folks would discover that the working class has deserted them.Whereas the Democratic management defends the established order, the American persons are offended and need change.They usually’re proper. pic.twitter.com/lM2gSJmQFL
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) November 6, 2024
Now that Biden’s time period is coming to a detailed, and Harris conceded the race in defeat, Bernie isn’t mincing phrases together with his criticism of the democratic occasion and priorities. “It ought to come as no nice shock {that a} Democratic Celebration which has deserted working class folks would discover that the working class has deserted them.” Many throughout the occasion, and former Bernie supporters who maybe will not be within the occasion or supportive any longer, have been beating this drum for some time: Democrats favor coastal elites, who opine about progressive politics and “wokism” intellectually, whereas paying lip-service (and patronizing numerous different minority teams) to working class individuals. After shedding to Donald Trump twice, many democrats, progressives, and positively impartial and democratic american voters are questioning, the place will we go from right here?
Trump is a tour de power. A charismatic determine that has actually altered the course of American politics in methods the GOP, strategists, journalists, and the political institution by no means thought was potential. The democratic occasion has been struggling to provide you with solutions in opposition to Trump and MAGA populism after 2016. Whereas mainstream media could proceed to forged his victories because the product of racism, sexism, or different beliefs steeped in identification politics, the identical they did in 2016, many throughout the occasion are accepting that the methods round identification politics, anti-Trump, and a few ethical excessive floor are decisively ineffective.
Whereas all of us might be analyzing knowledge, voter profiles, traits, and many others over the subsequent a number of months, many journalists, together with some fairly influential progressive leaning media shops together with Pod Save America, Breaking Factors, and past conceded that the Democratic Celebration should return to being the occasion of working folks and deal with the financial system and inflation, which was probably the most essential points for voters on the polls this yr. The Democratic occasion interval from 2016-present has targeted closely on identification politics, what many deem as “wokism” and extra, which I wouldn’t discredit out proper. A lot of that is essential. However, the burden and prioritization of those points over financial and different hardships People face has been the problem. Many democrats and progressive knew this, however now now we have knowledge and election outcomes to show that it’s not a successful technique for the occasion, significantly within the presidential election.
Being a progressive and Bitcoiner is sort of a singular place to be in, and it’s helped me analyze the world and predict sure traits and outcomes in attention-grabbing ways in which usually occasions bitcoiners, or progressives exterior of the bitcoin bubble, miss. In reality, I’m not alone. Most of the outspoken progressives and left-leaning people within the bitcoin house had been former Bernie bros, impressed by Occupy Wall Avenue and different populist financial messages round wealth inequality, company seize in America, Massive Financial institution bailouts and the 2008 International Monetary Disaster. Many people have been turned off by the occasion’s pivot away from these battles, even to the purpose the place Senator Elizabeth Warren has been working with and funded closely by Massive Banks, to not point out her and plenty of others excessive hostile takes in opposition to the revolutionary expertise born within the wake of the International Monetary Disaster: Bitcoin.
Right here’s my take: Not solely should the Democrats embrace Bitcoin to have a political future in America–I believe many present and former members can be rather more open to it. Rep. Ro Khanna is one main instance of a progressive democrat who understands the place the Democratic Celebration has been shedding floor to the Republicans on financial points and Bitcoin. On the Bitcoin convention in Nashville this previous summer season, Rep Khanna acknowledged, “Being in opposition to Bitcoin is like being in opposition to cell telephones or the laptop computer, or semi conductors, it is a expertise.” Bitcoin is for freedom.”
Bitcoin advocates and marketing campaign funding performed an enormous half on this yr’s presidential election. Whereas most democrats and the Harris marketing campaign selected to primarily ignore Bitcoin and the business, with some impartial or imprecise help of expertise talked about right here and there, after a hostile 4 years beneath the Biden administration, this seems to be an error they could not afford to make. Many progressives and democrats could proceed to talk out in opposition to the business and the marketing campaign financing and superpacs that introduced in Massive Crypto Cash (which marketing campaign financing after which bitcoin the expertise are two various things), however it’s a problem that may not be ignored, and nearly weekly appears to be rising increasingly more bi-partisan (together with possession of Bitcoin in America, proven to be exceptionally broad and various throughout the political spectrum from a latest survey performed by Colin Brown, Troy Cross, and Andrew Perkins).
Donald Trump and the GOP have used and garnered the one problem crypto voters in large methods. Marketing campaign guarantees embody defending the proper to self-custody, a U.S. Bitcoin Strategic Reserve, to help the crypto and bitcoin mining industries, Free Ross, and extra. We’ll see if he makes good on these guarantees, and it’s unclear how large of an impression Trump’s pro-crypto positions had on the election consequence, however it’s not negligible. And if something, it additionally symbolized what we noticed was essential for American voters– an enormous shift from the present administration, and massive guarantees relating to the financial system and financial prosperity for America.
Because the Democrats head again to the drafting board to find out the way forward for the occasion and their priorities, many are able to go large, unburdened by what has been (sorry, needed to) with the Hilary, Biden, Harris neo-liberal coalitions. And there’s one good place to start out–the financial system, silly! Affordability, inflation, and hope in a brighter financial future for center class and dealing households are successful priorities and what People on the finish of the day present up in big numbers to vote for. Bitcoin has a big position to play on this strategy and messaging, as an inflation hedge, unimaginable financial savings expertise for working households, censorship resistant funds (ought to progressive activists discover themselves in positions to want resistance cash in opposition to Donald Trump’s authoritarian insurance policies), and past. If the Democrats are critical about getting again to a few of their roots because the occasion of working class folks, together with an olive department to former impartial and Bernie helps who’re keen about combating for monetary freedom and a greater dwelling for working class People, Occupy, and past, they are going to discover Bitcoin is an unimaginable instrument to that finish. With Bitcoin there isn’t a barrier to possession, no intermediary, not dealer or financial institution you should use or be “accredited” by
Permissionless, freedom cash. Can this be a rallying cry for the subsequent chapter within the progressive motion and for Democrats to make the most of on the marketing campaign path? It nearly appears inevitable…a when, not an if…that the Democratic occasion capitulates to Bitcoin and the American folks’s calls for, or face extinction. Myself, Margot Paez, and others from The Progressive Bitcoiner will definitely be right here to advocate for a rebirthing of the progressive motion, powered by Bitcoin.
This can be a visitor publish by Trey Walsh. Opinions expressed are fully their very own and don’t essentially replicate these of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Journal.
