In response to JD Vance’s appearance at a Bitcoin conference today, DNC Chair Ken Martin released the following statement: 

“Just last week, Donald Trump threw a lavish dinner for foreign nationals and billionaires funnelling money into his crypto scheme to buy favors from the White House. As Trump continues to skyrocket prices and his GOP works to rip away Americans’ health care and food assistance, JD Vance is doubling down on the crypto grift. Trump and Vance are selling out working families to make a quick buck — and the American people are paying the price.” 

TODAY: JD Vance is doubling down on the administration’s crypto grifts, headlining a conference for the billionaire investors Donald Trump is courting to line his own pockets. 

Washington Post: “Vice President JD Vance will headline a political fundraiser in Las Vegas on Tuesday requiring a $1 million donation per attendee, according to an invitation for the event obtained by The Washington Post. …

“The exclusive fundraiser is taking place the night before Vance is scheduled to speak at the Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas, a massive gathering of cryptocurrency investors. Attendees at the conference will not only hear from the vice president, but also from Trump’s sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, as well as from White House crypto czar David Sacks, among other speakers.” 

CBS News: “Vice President JD Vance is speaking Wednesday at a Bitcoin conference, marking the Trump administration’s latest overture to the cryptocurrency industry — a once-fringe business that President Trump and his allies have embraced in recent months.”

Last week, Trump threw a lavish dinner — funded by taxpayers — for ultra-wealthy crypto investors who funneled $148 million into his grifts to buy favors from the White House. 

New York Times: “President Trump gathered Thursday evening at his Virginia golf club with the highest-paying customers of his personal cryptocurrency, promising that he would promote the crypto industry from the White House as protesters outside condemned the event as a historic corruption of the presidency. … 

“Several of the dinner guests, in interviews with The New York Times, said that they attended the event with the explicit intent of influencing Mr. Trump and U.S. financial regulations. … 

“Mr. Trump and his business partners organized the dinner to promote sales of his $TRUMP cryptocurrency, a memecoin launched just days before Mr. Trump’s inauguration. … Mr. Trump’s coins have become a vehicle for investors, including many foreigners, to funnel money to his family.” 

Washington Post: “[T]wo [Trump family-affiliated] entities own 80 percent of the coins, and the drop in value has affected their stake as well. But they have benefited from the coin in other ways, including by imposing 1 percent fees on purchases made through their official crypto transaction system, known as a liquidity pool.” 

Reuters: “Exclusive: Trump’s meme coin made nearly $100 million in trading fees, as small traders lost money” 

NBC News: “Meet the man — once sued by the SEC — who won the crypto contest to have dinner with the president”

Wall Street Journal: “‘An Ethics Nightmare’: Trump’s Memecoin Dinner to Draw Crypto High Rollers”

“Government-watchdog groups have condemned the dinner, saying it potentially violates federal rules that bar officials from soliciting gifts. If any attendees are linked to foreign states, the dinner could also violate the Constitution’s emoluments clause, which bars federal officials from accepting gifts from foreign governments, they say.” 

REMINDER: Trump is enriching himself and his billionaire backers with crypto schemes — all while everyday Americans lose money.

Wall Street Journal: “Four months into Trump’s second term, he and his family have promoted their private business interests in unprecedented ways. Beyond the memecoin, their forays into crypto include a bitcoin-mining company and World Liberty Financial, a venture promoted by Trump’s sons. Such efforts pose conflicts of interest, critics say, given that the president has reined in crypto regulation.” 

Associated Press: “Trump hosts top crypto investors as some industry leaders fear he’s putting personal profits first” 

Bloomberg: “[N]o modern American president has positioned his family to make so much money while in the White House. Already, since the early days of [Donald Trump’s] reelection campaign, he’s more than doubled his net worth to about $5.4 billion.

“In that time, the Trump name has powered … more than $500 million in sales from just one of his crypto ventures.” 

Washington Post: “At least 67,000 new or small-time crypto investors like Davis have bet on Trump’s meme coin, pouring $15 million into the volatile venture endorsed by Trump and benefiting his personal wealth, a Washington Post analysis found. …

“The firm [Chainalysis] told The Post that 58 investors have so far made more than $10 million each in profits from the coin, for a total of roughly $1.1 billion — but that 764,000 other investors, most of whom had small holdings, have lost money on the coin.”