Former president Trump reaffirms Bitcoin Conference commitment following attack

Former President Donald Trump has reaffirmed that he will attend this year’s Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, following the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania over the weekend.

We are delighted to announce that Donald Trump has committed to delivering his speech in person at Bitcoin 2024. We are proud to welcome him and share the solidarity of the global Bitcoin community and our universal commitment to freedom of expression and peaceful democracy.

— Bitcoin Conference (@TheBitcoinConf) July 14, 2024

Conference organizers are beefing up security for the annual bitcoin conference in anticipation of Trump’s attendance. “We are delighted to announce that Donald Trump has committed to delivering his speech in person at Bitcoin 2024,” organizers wrote on social media. “We are proud to welcome him and share the solidarity of the global bitcoin community and our universal commitment to free speech and peaceful democracy.”

Conference organizers acknowledged security concerns: “We understand you have questions about security and what to expect at this historic event. We are actively engaged with our security teams and cooperating fully with all relevant parties to ensure a safe event.”

The event will be live-streamed and will also feature keynote speeches from leading figures in the crypto industry, including MicroStrategy’s Chairman Michael Saylor, ARK founder and CEO Cathie Wood, presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., artist Russell Brand, whistleblower Edward Snowden, politician and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, and Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn.

Trump caused a stir in the crypto industry in January when he vowed to ban central bank digital currencies, long a primary concern of crypto advocates concerned about financial oversight.

Trump began accepting crypto donations in Bitcoin, Ether, and Dogecoin in May and vowed to create a “crypto army that moves the world.” [Trump] The campaign that achieved victory on November 5th.”

“We need your support to save our country from Biden’s failures,” the Trump campaign said this spring. “While Biden piles regulations and bureaucracy on all of us, [former] President Trump is ready to embrace new technologies that will Make America Great Again.”

Other politicians have also taken a page from Trump’s book and embraced cryptocurrency. Last week, Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn announced that her campaign would also accept crypto donations.