JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — Despite increasing bipartisan efforts aimed at clearer regulations for the digital asset industry, one major obstacle to passing legislation in the U.S. is the actions of President Donald Trump and his family’s involvement in the sector, according to Representative Angie Craig (D-Minn.).
“It’s no secret that my side of the aisle would prefer not to see any sitting President — I won’t name one — participating in this market while a sitting president unless those assets are in a sealed trust,” Craig stated during the SALT conference in Jackson Hole on Wednesday.
Trump and his family, particularly Eric Trump, who was at the venue during Craig’s remarks, have established businesses in the crypto industry since Trump resumed office this past January.
Trump has launched several meme coins linked to his name, and his social media platform, Truth Social, has pursued multiple exchange-traded funds. Eric Trump co-founded American Bitcoin, a mining company associated with Hut 8.
Craig, who shared the stage with Representative Bryan Steil (R-Wi.), mentioned the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which recently passed in the House with overwhelming bipartisan support. The Senate Banking Committee is creating its own version of the crypto market structure legislation.
While the majority of Republicans support the bill, many Democrats remain doubtful, largely due to the Trump family’s involvement, Craig noted.
“The elephant in the room here is the President’s family’s participation in this marketplace and that’s a stumbling block to get more Democrats to support the legislation,” she said.
Craig emphasized the need for stronger language in the legislation to limit conflicts of interest to foster broader Democratic support.
“If we could find some language that would allow or prevent conflicts of interest to occur, from our perspective, I think you would see a whole lot more Democrats support it,” she added.
As the leading Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, Craig has previously claimed that the Trump family’s crypto activities complicate the debate. In a committee hearing on the Clarity Act, she suggested that Congress should impose restrictions on the trading activities of a sitting President in markets regulated by the CFTC, including cryptocurrency.
Despite her concerns, Craig still voted to advance the Clarity Act, even without adding the proposed provisions for conflict of interest management.
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