Senator Hagerty Pushes The Ball Forward
The Primary Sponsor of The GENIUS Act Also Has Big Bitcoin Plans for His Home State of Tennessee
Senator Hagerty (R-TN) was at the center of digital asset news last week.
The senator, who is the primary sponsor of the GENIUS Act, a stablecoin bill that Bitcoin enthusiasts who don’t particularly care for stablecoins should still pay attention to, made headlines as the GENIUS Act passed through the U.S. Senate with 68 votes in favor of the bill (18 of which were Democrats).
While the senator is surely a proponent of stablecoins, he’s also bullish on Bitcoin, and he plans to make his home state a hub for Bitcoin mining.
I spoke with Senator Hagerty in person at Bitcoin 2025 to learn more about his plans for Tennessee.
Don’t Merge The CLARITY Act with the GENIUS Act, Some Argue
Some have proposed merging the CLARITY Act, which includes sections that would protect the developers and providers of noncustodial Bitcoin and crypto tech, with the GENIUS Act as the latter moves to the House floor for a vote.
However, many others think this is a bad idea, as it might actually hurt the chances of either of these bills passing.
I delved further into this topic in the following piece this week:
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Speaking of noncustodial tools, the Trezor Safe 3 Bitcoin wallet is a great one.
So great that you might consider getting one RIGHT NOW.
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What’s Happening with State-Level Bitcoin Laws?
So glad you asked.
I recently hosted an Space with Julian Fahrer, the founder of Bitcoin Laws, and some friends and acquaintances who are working on Bitcoin and Bitcoin-related legislation in Rhode Island.
Please feel free to check it out below and make a mental note that we’re going to aim to do Spaces like this every Thursday or Friday of the week at noon EST if you want to join us live.
Join Former Venezuelan Opposition Leader and Me at PubKey on Friday (6/27)
This Friday, I’ll be interviewing former Venezuelan opposition leader, Leopoldo López, at PubKey.
This is a big one for me, as I lived in Venezuela under Chávez, and very much supported López’s efforts to oust Chávez.
Please click on the link below to join this free event that’s open to the public.
Tune in to the Bitcoin Policy Summit on Wednesday (6/25)
Please set a reminder to tune in to the Bitcoin Policy Summit this Wednesday.
We’ll be streaming it from the Bitcoin Magazine YouTube channel from 8:30 AM EST to 5:30 PM EST.
The event will feature talks from the likes of:
Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY)
Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY)
Deputy Director of the CIA, Michael Ellis
Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN)
Anaïse Kanimba, Rwandan Human Rights Advocate
Roya Mahboob, Afghan Tech Entrepreneur and Bitcoin Advocate
It should be totally awesome.
I’ll be in DC to cover the event as well as tomorrow’s Senate subcommittee hearing entitled “Exploring Bipartisan Legislative Frameworks for Digital Asset Market Structure”, which begins at 3:00 PM EST.
You can watch the hearing here. (Keep an eye out for me if you do!)
Also, wish me luck! Hoping to lock down some interviews at the White House on Thursday.
Markets
Even in the wake of the very sad news of the U.S.’s bombing Iran, bitcoin’s price is holding up remarkably well.
While I feel like a sociopath for commenting on bitcoin’s price at a time like this, this is a newsletter about bitcoin, and I’m sure some of you are wondering whether bitcoin might be viewed as a flight to safety in a time of war, so I guess I’m just doing my job.
Truth is, I don’t know if bitcoin will continue to act like a safe haven asset. It seems to be doing so right now, but something tells me the market thinks that deescalation is on the horizon.
We shall see.
If you feel overexposed to bitcoin and that holding some more cash right now would help you sleep better, consider making changes accordingly. That said, please don’t interpret that as financial advice, because it isn’t, nor is anything I write in this newsletter.
Thank you, as always, for reading.
Sending so much love to everyone in this very uncertain time.
I hope you’re all okay.
Big hugs.
Best,
Frank
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