Two political action committees with ties to the cryptocurrency industry are coming off the sidelines to help Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, as he faces an unexpectedly tight reelection fight with Democratic U.S. Rep. Colin Allred.

Allred is not known as a crypto skeptic; he voted for the industry’s top-priority bill this year. That has not stopped the two PACs from doling out hundreds of thousands of dollars in recent days to aid Cruz, who has said he wants Texas to be “the oasis on planet Earth for bitcoin and crypto.”

The sums don’t compare to the firehouse of cash, heavily favoring Republicans, that a separate industry group — Fairshake — has unleashed in other races. Still, the spending suggests that industry factions trust only Republicans to reduce regulation.

“We believe the only way to protect Bitcoin is to beat Democrats in the House and Senate this November so we can block White House regulations,” Bitcoin Freedom........

© The Intercept