Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, blocked the originally scheduled Financial Services and Agriculture Committee joint committee hearing following Chairman Hill’s refusal to include provisions in legislation blocking President Donald Trump from further enriching himself with crypto. In response, Waters convened a separate Democratic hearing focused on the litany of crypto corruption carried out by Trump and his family and issued the following statement.

“Good morning, as you all know now, the joint hearing originally scheduled today with the House Agriculture Committee requires the consent of all members, including Democrats. I, in good faith, could not provide my consent because our Republican colleagues refuse to address the unprecedented conflicts of interest presented by President Donald Trump and his family.

“I am deeply concerned that Republicans aren’t just ignoring Trump’s corruption, they are legitimizing Trump’s and his family’s efforts to enrich themselves on the backs of average Americans. Through his crypto businesses, Trump has turned the office of the presidency into a personal money-making machine. He is flouting our country’s national security and anti-corruption laws, allowing adversaries like China and Russia to curry favor, either blatantly or anonymously, through transfers of money to him and his inner circle. Just this morning, we saw new reports that insiders made nearly $100 million on Melania’s memecoin. Trump’s actions undermine our democracy and free market system. In fact, this is how authoritarian regimes do business. 

“The President of the United States—who took an oath to uphold the Constitution—has said he doesn’t know if he has an obligation to uphold the Constitution. He has questioned whether Americans are entitled to due process – a constitutional right that protects the people from the exploitation of government power. He is arresting judges, blackmailing law firms, and deporting American citizens, including children. Trump believes he is above the law. Well, he’s not and Democrats will do what we can to hold him accountable.  

“Now, let’s take a look at the timeline of President Trump’s profiteering, shall we? President Trump kicked off his presidency with the launch of his memecoin, which reports have shown has lost investors $2 billion while he made at least $350 million. 

“In March, President Trump’s World Liberty Financial announced the launch of its stablecoin, conveniently named USD1, just before our committee was scheduled to vote on legislation. Stablecoins are a type of crypto that claim to maintain a constant or ‘stable’ value, and are used in most crypto transactions today. Nevertheless, the Republicans’ bill did nothing to address Trump’s conflict, and instead voted to hand Trump the authority to write the rules over his and his competitors’ stablecoins.

“In April, Trump’s sons launched their own Bitcoin company, ‘American Bitcoin.’ Not coincidentally, President Trump had already instructed the Treasury to create a Bitcoin Reserve and a Digital Asset Strategic Reserve, a move that would boost the value of the Bitcoin he and his Cabinet members own, using taxpayer resources. Trump ran on a campaign to put more money in the pockets of Americans—turns out he just meant his pockets and those of his cronies. His first 100 days were filled with failures, chaos, and incompetence. The United States’ role and reputation globally has been severely damaged. And many Americans are worried they will no longer receive the social security checks and Medicaid they need.  

“Now, Congressional Republicans insist on pushing forward crypto market structure legislation. I ask members to keep in mind, all of this is occurring against this unprecedented backdrop. Every day Congressional Republicans refuse to stand up for their constituents, they diminish their power and Congresses’ and damage the country’s democratic future. 

“As members of Congress, we have the serious duty to protect and defend the American public and since the Republican majority refuses to do its job, I am hosting today’s roundtable to shed light on these critical issues before it’s too late. I have also posted a discussion draft for this hearing that would ban the President and Members of Congress from owning crypto assets and firms.   

“I am pleased to hear that our Democratic colleagues in the Senate are similarly voicing concerns about Trump’s corruption and the dangers of passing legislation that doesn’t address it. And I’m very pleased that Democratic Members of the House are ready to do the same.”

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