Highlights:
- Coinbase’s Stand With Crypto retracted Harris’ pro-crypto classification after criticism over her “B” grade.
- The lobby group updated its criteria, stating there’s “not enough information” on Harris’s crypto stance.
- Critics argue that Trump’s strong support contrasts sharply with Harris’s vague comments on cryptocurrency.
Coinbase’s lobbying group, Stand With Crypto, has retracted its classification of Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for President in November’s upcoming election, as a crypto supporter. This shift came after strong criticism over the group’s decision to give Harris a “B” grade for her crypto support.
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The group ranks U.S. politicians on their crypto support based on public comments. On September 23, they awarded the Democrat’s presidential nominee a “B,” indicating that Harris “supports crypto.” Stand With Crypto explained on X that Harris recently made a somewhat supportive statement, which influenced the score.
We've tracked 21 statements on crypto from @realDonaldTrump & he's rated Strongly Supportive.@VP Harris recently made a Somewhat Supportive statement & we've added it to our card.
Major candidates weighing in on crypto would've been unthinkable even recently. We're winning. pic.twitter.com/OQoqqylaia
— Stand With Crypto🛡️ (@standwithcrypto) September 23, 2024
Harris Vows to Support AI, Crypto If Elected
During the Sept. 22 fundraiser at Cipriani Wall Street in Manhattan, Harris vowed to boost investments in artificial intelligence (AI) and crypto if elected. This marks the first time Harris has directly spoken about cryptocurrency during her campaign.
Her comments come as the industry wonders if she will adopt a stance more favorable than President Biden’s, who is seen as less supportive of crypto. Last month, her senior campaign adviser, Brian Nelson, indicated that she might support crypto policies if elected in November, highlighting the need for “rules of the road” in light of some companies’ failures.
Lobby Group Revises Scorecard for Harris Amid Calls for More Transparency
The lobby group revised its score a day later, with Harris’ profile on its site now indicating that there is “not enough information” regarding her stance on crypto.
In a Sept. 25 X post, Crypto executive director Logan Dobson wrote:
“We’ve gotten a ton of feedback at [Stand With Crypto] on our politician scorecard recently, and I wanted you to know we’ve listened and made changes.”
He mentioned that it will now be more challenging for candidates to obtain a scorecard grade, whether positive or negative. “We think it’s appropriate to require more from candidates — more statements, more detail — before our scorecard assigns them a full grade,” he added. Dobson mentioned that if a politician makes crypto-related statements lacking sufficient detail for a score, Stand With Crypto will indicate that there isn’t enough information.
Despite the changes, some critics believe the new criteria fall short. Wayne Vaughan, founder of Tierion, proposed that Harris’s score should reflect her lack of support for crypto, noting that her administration is perceived as the most anti-crypto in U.S. history.
.@standwithcrypto has stripped @KamalaHarris of her B-rating after public complaints. They now say they lack enough information to provide her with a rating.
She is the VP and has presided over the most anti-crypto administration in United States history.
Spineless cowards. https://t.co/tfnfrgTzl1 pic.twitter.com/UwXVzPtJv2
— Wayne Vaughan (@WayneVaughan) September 25, 2024
Additionally, others like Tom Shaughnessy from Delphi Digital stated that Harris’s vague statements did not provide enough justification for a positive score.
Tagging Kamala as supporting crypto is way off from @standwithcrypto and I'm happy to call them out on it given their massive user base
Kamala has made one vague statement of support, months late, with zero details.
I'm unsure what warrants a "supports crypto" rating but this… https://t.co/YBBEcmu21G
— Tommy (@Shaughnessy119) September 24, 2024
Stand With Crypto Designates Trump as Strong Crypto Supporter Despite Past Criticism
Meanwhile, Stand With Crypto rates Harris’ pro-crypto Republican rival, Donald Trump, as “strongly supports crypto.” He received points for social media posts promoting his non-fungible token collections and news reports about his crypto earnings. Notably, the group did not place much emphasis on Trump’s prior negative comments about cryptocurrencies, such as his 2019 statement that Bitcoin’s value is “based on thin air.”
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