Presidential Debate Overshadows Crypto Interests

United States President Joe Biden and presidential bidder Donald Trump didn't mention crypto once in their 90-minute debate on Thursday. This occurred despite crypto lobbyists raising millions of dollars this election cycle.

The first of two CNN-hosted debates on June 27 focused on each presidential hopeful's plans for the economy, abortion rights, immigration, and foreign policy. It also briefly touched on their mental capabilities, as Biden, 81, and Trump, 78, are the oldest candidates to ever run for president.

Crypto's non-mention comes despite a trio of crypto-backed super political action committees (PAC) raising $202.8 million from large industry backers. These PACs have spent $93.6 million to influence the 2024 elections.

Super PACs and Their Influence

Two other related super PACs, Protect Progress and Defend American Jobs, have spent $22.8 million in this year's elections after raising $25 million. Together, the three super PACs have raised the third-most amount of any PAC and can receive donations of unlimited size but can't coordinate with campaigns directly.

Trump has vowed to end what he called Biden's "war on crypto" if elected. He recently hosted a meeting with Bitcoin (BTC) miners, telling them he wanted the cryptocurrency to be "made in America."

However, some in the industry, such as Kraken CEO Dave Ripley, said Biden is "softening up" to crypto. Others, including crypto advocate Mark Cuban, argue the head of the nation's securities regulator will "literally cost Joe Biden the election" due to its wave of crypto-related enforcement actions.

Voter Priorities and Polling Data

Gallup polls from last month show that crypto could be better for American voters: most rank the economy, inflation, poor governance, and immigration as the country's critical issues.

"Crypto's non-mention comes despite a trio of crypto-backed super political action committees raising $202.8 million from large industry backers."

The outwardly pro-crypto independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr didn't meet CNN's requirements to appear in the debate. He claimed the network "rigged the rules" and hosted an alternative "real debate" on X at the same time.

During the "debate"—which saw Kennedy alone on stage being asked questions—the presidential hopeful repeated his claim from April that he would use "AI and blockchain to eliminate waste in government to save more money."

According to a June 27 FiveThirtyEight poll taken before the debate, Trump leads Biden by only 0.2 percentage points in national polling—41.1% to the incumbent president's 40.9%—while Kennedy is polling at 9%.

Looking Ahead

The second debate between Biden and Trump is set for Sept. 10. The elections for president and vice president, all 435 House seats, and 34 of the 100 Senate seats are slated for Nov. 5.