WASHINGTON, DC - Rep. Ro Khanna (C-CA) was the first Democratic member of Congress to endorse the ... [ ] idea of bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset. Rep. Khanna joins a growing list of lawmakers, led by Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis, who emphasize the importance of holding bitcoin on the nation's balance sheet. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“This is our Louisiana Purchase moment.”
So declared Senator Cynthia Lummis at Bitcoin Nashville in July when she unveiled legislation to create a strategic bitcoin reserve. Lummis’ bill would use existing funds at the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department to purchase 1 million bitcoin. The move would cement the United States’ position as the largest nation-state holder of bitcoin, granting it 5% ownership of the entire network—on par with the country’s stake in the global gold supply.
Lummis’ comparison to the Louisiana Purchase resonated with the pro-crypto crowd. In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson made an asymmetric bet by buying the Louisiana Territory—one that paid asymmetric returns. Now in 2024, innovation-friendly policymakers see a similar opportunity in bitcoin.
On the same day Lummis released the details of her bill, former President Donald Trump outlined his own policy to create a “national bitcoin stockpile” and to “never sell” the roughly 200,000 bitcoin currently owned by the U.S. government. Trump also likened bitcoin to “the steel industry of 100 years ago” and vowed to make the United States “the........