Senate Candidate Accepts Largest Contribution in BTC

This week the Republican Senate candidate Austin Petersen announced he accepted the largest federal election campaign contribution settled in digital currency. Petersen, a former Libertarian, has received a total of 24 cryptocurrency donations this year, and the largest was for 0.284 BTC ($4,500 USD).

The Largest Cryptocurrency Campaign Donation

I think it goes without saying we’re going to see a lot more of this in terms of campaign contributions and campaign financing — Austin is personally a fan of competition in the marketplace, even when it comes to our currency — With the rise of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, it was a no-brainer.

Gold, Silver, Cryptocurrencies and Ending the Fed

Petersen detailed last September that he would like to see “deregulation on monetary policy.” Further, the candidate added he would like to see the abolition of the private banking system the U.S. Federal Reserve.
“But barring that, at a minimum, I would like to introduce legislation that would decentralize the monetary unit, the dollar, in such a way as to legalize competition: Gold, silver, and cryptocurrencies, so that they can compete — That would cause a spike in the prices,” Petersen explains.
The contender follows other U.S. bureaucrats who’ve accepted bitcoin donations in the past. Back in 2014, the Coloradan Democrat Jared Polis received BTC for his campaign. The libertarian-leaning Republican Senator from Kentucky, Rand Paul, accepted crypto for his presidential run in 2016.
What do you think about Austin Petersen’s campaign donation? Do you envision digital currencies being used more often to fund politicians running for office? Let us know what you think about this story in the comment section below.

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Images via Endthefed.org, Austin Petersen, Twitter, and the Kansas City Star.