The Scoop: How Gary Gensler is helping Donald Trump

This column was co-written by Frank Chaparro, director of special projects at The Block, and Laura Vidiella of MNNC Group. The views expressed in this column are their own and do not reflect the opinions of their employers.

It almost seems as if Gary Gensler is actively trying to secure the presidency for Donald Trump.

Once it became apparent that crypto could be a valuable tool for former President Trump in his bid for re-election, he embraced the title of the “crypto president.” This move prompted Democrats like Mark Cuban and others to pressure their party to be more open to crypto, a small yet vocal and highly online group.

However, despite these efforts, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission continues to treat crypto as an adversary . On Wednesday, the NFT platform OpenSea announced it received a Wells notice from the agency, signaling that digital collectibles, in the SEC’s view, should be scrutinized as securities. This is yet another absurd move by the agency and one that will not benefit Democrats in the upcoming election.

Before Kamala Harris took the helm of the Democratic ticket, it was Trump’s race to lose; now, it’s Kamala’s to win. However, Gensler’s alienation of a large, young, and wealthy voter base could do her no favors, as we discussed with Anthony Scaramucci . While I’m not an expert on whether this is sound legal analysis, it is certainly bad politics. Consider the size of the anti-crypto voting bloc: it’s essentially just Gensler and Senator Elizabeth Warren.

Not a smart political position for Democrats heading into November.

The Block’s Frank Chaparro serves up the latest headlines, charts, trends, and views on crypto and DeFi from around The Block, Twitter, and The Scoop pod.  Subscribe to The Scoop newsletter , which hits inboxes on Tuesday and Friday mornings.

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