Sen. Cynthia Lummis praises Bitcoin, calls CBDCs ‘the beast’

Senator Cynthia Lummis reiterated her Bitcoin agenda on Friday and downplayed the benefits of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) in an interview with Fox Business host Larry Kudlow.

In her latest interview with Fox Business on Friday, July 13, Lummis highlighted the potential benefits of Bitcoin reserves in boosting the global strength of the U.S. dollar. The Wyoming senator, referred to as the “Crypto Queen” of Congress, has expressed concerns about CBDCs, describing them as “monsters” due to their potential for government surveillance.

“No central bank digital currency — I’m very happy about that because that’s a way to spy on the American people,” Lummis told Kudlow. “But we want people to be able to have individual wallets for their Bitcoin so they have sovereignty over their own money.”

Lummis, a Republican, is also a vocal figure. critic The US Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against companies like Tornado Cash for unlicensed money transfers.

Tornado Cash founders accused of laundering more than $1 billion in criminal proceeds

In a social media post on X on Friday, Lummis outlined his core goals, which include opposing retail CBDCs, protecting self-sovereign Bitcoin wallets, and securing the dollar’s ​​supremacy in the 21st century. His pro-Bitcoin stance stands in sharp contrast to the current uncertain regulatory environment, which has drawn criticism from crypto industry leaders.

See below.

Bitcoin and digital assets are the future. Here is my agenda:

✅ No Retail Central Bank Digital Currencies
✅Clear protections for self-storage Bitcoin wallets
✅Restore Dollar Dominance in the 21st Century picture.twitter.com/yEy9tcxU5b

— Senator Cynthia Lummis (@SenLummis) July 12, 2024

The ‘right to mine’ Bitcoin

Lummis also lampooned Former President Donald Trump’s promise to mine Bitcoin in the U.S. It’s worth noting that the U.S. is already one of the leading countries in Bitcoin mining activity. Furthermore, around 94% of Bitcoin has already been mined.

Like Lummis, Trump has also voiced his opposition to CBDCs.

Earlier this year, the four-time GOP frontrunner for the 2024 election called CBDCs “very dangerous,” claiming they could lead to sudden and unexplained withdrawals from people’s bank accounts, though the basis for that claim remains unclear.

Trump’s views on cryptocurrencies have fluctuated; in 2019, he criticized Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for their volatility and potential to facilitate “drug trafficking and other illegal activities.” Today, Trump, who recently pleaded guilty to falsifying business records, manages a cryptocurrency portfolio and sells non-fungible tokens (NFTs) featuring photoshopped images of himself.

I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies which are not money and whose value is highly volatile and in the air. Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate illegal behavior including drug dealing and other illegal activities….

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2019

Why Trump and Lummis might be wrong

Proponents of CBDCs argue that these digital currencies can speed up transactions, provide financial services to the unbanked, and increase payment security by ensuring transactions are final and unalterable, thereby reducing fraud, according to Coinbase.

CBDCs represent a digital form of a country’s fiat currency that is issued by the government and is not tied to a physical commodity.

Several central banks, including the US Federal Reserve (Fed), the Bank of Japan, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), and Germany’s Deutsche Bundesbank, are exploring issuing CBDC.

The increasing interest in CBDCs is driven by multiple trends: the decline in cash usage, increasing interest in privately issued digital assets, the perceived need for central banks to innovate in the payments space, and the rise of global payment systems.

Lummis’ defense of Bitcoin and skepticism of CBDCs reflect broader discussions about the future of digital currencies and their impact on the financial system.