US Government’s Bitcoin Pivot and What Comes Next
International Man: Since its inception in 2009, the US government has been largely hostile toward Bitcoin—but that changed dramatically with Trump’s victory in the 2024 election.
For the first time, the leader of the world’s most powerful nation is openly pro-Bitcoin.
What’s your take on this remarkable shift?
Doug Casey: Maybe Trump was brought around to appreciating the merits of Bitcoin by his association with Silicon Valley tech guys and various Bitcoin bros. The recent creation of Trumpcoin has added a couple of billion to his net worth and undoubtedly cemented his enthusiasm. Although, like 99% of the zillions of meme coins out there, Trumpcoin appears to serve no useful purpose and has zero tangible value.
Bitcoin, on the other hand, has real value—even though it’s just a mathematical construct floating in the ether. In today’s world, Bitcoin is a reasonable money. Through the last 5,000 years of history, gold has been money, followed by silver and, to some degree, copper. We can now add Bitcoin to that short list.
Let me take a moment to review what constitutes a good money, which has six essential characteristics. It must be durable, divisible, convenient, consistent, usable, and limited.
It must be durable. That’s why we don’t use wheat as money. Gold is ultra-durable. So is Bitcoin, barring a catastrophic collapse of the electrical grid and the internet—a very small but real danger.
It must be divisible. That’s why we don’t use artwork as money. Gold is highly divisible; Bitcoin, as a mathematical concept, is infinitely divisible.
It must be convenient. That’s why we don’t use lead as money. Gold has a very high unit value, but in today’s computer-oriented world, where everybody is umbilically attached to an electronic device, Bitcoin passes that test and is arguably superior.
It must be consistent. That’s why we don’t use real estate as money. As an element, every piece of pure gold is chemically identical. As a mathematical concept, each Bitcoin is just like every other. Since the weight and purity of gold has to be assayed, however
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LewRockwell.com is a libertarian website that publishes articles, essays, and blog posts advocating for minimal government, free markets, and individual liberty. The site was founded by Lew Rockwell, an American libertarian political commentator, activist, and former congressional staffer. The website often features content that is critical of mainstream politics, state intervention, and foreign policy, among other topics. It is a platform frequently used to disseminate Austrian economics, a school of economic thought that is popular among some libertarians.
