Newly elected US Senator Cynthia Lummis is a Bitcoiner and says she wants to raise Bitcoin with politicians. Bitcoin, she says, is a unique store of value that better retains purchasing power and transcends traditional currencies. She argues that Bitcoin is an alternative for every government in the world to fall back on in case the old system fails.
Bitcoiners are everywhere, including in politics. Former Wyoming treasurer, Republican Cynthia Lummis, was recently elected to represent the state of Wyoming in the U.S. Senate. It soon became apparent that Lummis is an enthusiastic supporter of Bitcoin. She recently talked more about it in Peter McCormack’s What Bitcoin Did podcast.
Above: Cynthia Lummis
The Bitcoin Senator
During the interview, she explains that she considers it part of her job to convince other senators and congressmen of the usefulness and importance of Bitcoin.
?ǣI really want to use some of my time in the Senate to introduce the topic of Bitcoin, help the Senate increase their knowledge about it, what it is, what it does, how it can grow and develop alongside our fiat currency. ” said the future senator.
Fiat currencies, also known as fiat money, have only recently become the norm from a historical perspective, she says. “The fact that there is now something new that transcends fiat currency and allows individuals worldwide to do business with each other without the limitations of fiat currency is unique in our time, but not unique in human history.” , she explains.
Better store of value
According to her, Bitcoin is a better kind of ‘store of value’ ; a means of storage of value. “In the case of the US dollar, inflation is baked into the central bank’s plan for the US dollar. So it’s no wonder our purchasing power is crumbling.” , Lummis explains. “And that won’t be the case with bitcoin.”
She also owns some bitcoin herself and stated to be a ‘HODLer’. She says she has never sold bitcoin, but has bought more.
Originally, it was her son-in-law who told her about Bitcoin. It took a while, but the penny fell fairly quickly for her because as a treasurer she has always been involved in long-term investments and since Wyoming has a lot of mining, she could also easily make a click with bitcoin mining.
Above: Listen for yourself to What Bitcoin Did’s interview with prospective Senator Cynthia Lummis
Inflation and debt
Inflation and the debt mountain are big problems, she says: “It’s really one of my biggest concerns. I know there is no strategy, no plan for the US to reduce the debt mountain. When I took office in 2009 Congress, we just went from 9 trillion to 10 trillion debt. Now we’re at about 27 trillion.”
“It’s money we’re borrowing from future generations, with no plan to pay it back. The interest we’re paying on the national debt will soon exceed what we spend on defense in total. That’s absolutely unsustainable.” , she continues. ?ǣSo we will have to develop a plan, but in addition we need an alternative path in case we fail and I see Bitcoin as that alternative path.?ǥ
New KYC regulations
She is concerned, however, about rumors that Secretary of State Mnuchin plans to introduce new regulations regarding personal bitcoin wallets. According to some reports, he would like to impose far-reaching _Know-Your-Customer (KYC)_ measures on the American Bitcoin sector, similar to the rules that have recently come into force in the Netherlands.
?ǣI believe it compromises privacy and I believe it hinders Bitcoin from continuing to develop on its own path that would help governments and individuals better understand its capabilities. what it could do if we gave it free reign, so to speak, without the regulations Secretary Mnuchin is proposing ,” said Lummis.
Politically neutral
When asked if she thinks Bitcoin is more in line with the Republicans or the Democrats, she replied, “I don’t think either.” According to her, Bitcoin cannot simply be placed in boxes. “I think it’s more Libertarian because it transcends political parties.”
Bitcoin is a backstop for every government
In conclusion, Lummis says she hopes she can help people become more comfortable with the idea of Bitcoin so that it can develop without government restrictions. According to her, governments also benefit from it.
“If we ever get to the point where we’ve spent so much that everything collapses, a ‘black swan’ event happens with every fiat currency, be it ours or yours, or China’s or Japan’s, then there is a backstop available to every government in the world and that is bitcoin.?ǥ said Cynthia Lummis.
Cynthia Lummis will be sworn in as senator on January 3, 2021. Incidentally, she will not be the first ‘Bitcoin senator’, because Georgia Kelly Loeffler’s Republican senator is also Bitcoiner.
