Trump’s Bitcoin Conference Speech: Establishing Bitcoin Strategic Reserve, Dismissing Gary Gensler
The 2024 Nashville Bitcoin Conference welcomed a heavyweight speaker, former President Donald Trump. Trump delivered an inspiring speech outlining his vision for the future of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, speaking for a full 40 minutes. He reviewed his achievements during his term and proposed a series of policies and plans aimed at making the United States a global cryptocurrency hub, including establishing a government Bitcoin reserve and appointing a cryptocurrency committee.
Below is the full text of Trump’s speech at the 2024 Nashville Bitcoin Conference, as compiled by Odaily Star Daily:
Our country is very fortunate to have the extraordinary talent, vitality, and talent of all the representatives here. This is amazing. Genius.
It’s not everyone, but many of you here. This spirit is the builder of America, and this spirit will help us make America great again. Standing before you today, I am full of respect and admiration for the achievements of the Bitcoin community.
Unbelievable. Really. I often tell my sons that this is incredible because they know a lot about Bitcoin. Their understanding far exceeds that of older people. I say, this is like the steel industry 100 years ago. Indeed. I feel you are still in the early stages. I can see it all happening. In just 15 years, Bitcoin has grown from an idea anonymously posted on an internet message board to the ninth most valuable asset in the world. Can you believe it? It’s a big deal. Think about it, it’s already bigger than ExxonMobil. Soon it will surpass the entire silver market in value. That’s a goal. One day, it might even surpass gold. With the current trend, it’s entirely possible. There has never been anything like this in the world. I don’t think you’ve ever seen anything like it either. Most people don’t even know what it is. You know.
Right?
So, what will happen when they understand? That will be very interesting. Bitcoin is not just a technological miracle, you know, it’s a miracle of cooperation and human achievement. Many relationships have been built during this process, forming good friendships at roundtable meetings with many leaders. Very interesting. There is competition, but there are also relationships and friendships among many people. I’ve noticed that. I usually don’t see this situation; usually, I see the opposite.
They want to take each other down. These people have a good feeling. They are also very smart. Congratulations on all the achievements you have made. This room is amazing. The people here are highly intelligent. I am competing with a low-intelligence person (Odaily note: referring to Harris). I’m not joking. She is a low-intelligence person.
The reason I am speaking to the Bitcoin community today can be summed up in simple words: America first. Because if we don’t do it, China will, and other countries will too. Let’s do it, and do it well.
My vision is for a dominant America in the future. We have the best economy and the highest standard of living. China is trying to dominate, they have made too much progress. While we wish them success, we wish to be the most successful. It’s important that we lead and set standards.
What will happen?
I hope America will lead in technology, science, manufacturing, and artificial intelligence. My uncle, Dr. John Trump, is a professor at MIT. He fits in well with all of you, that’s why I mention him. He is one of the longest-serving professors in MIT history. Our family is very smart; he has three different degrees. They invited him to stay as a professor, and he did for 41 years. When I was in the White House, the president of MIT gave me a book about my uncle. He is a legend in academia and at MIT. So I know a lot about your work, and I have great respect for people with high intelligence like you.
America’s destiny is to lead our opponents, never to hand over our industries. Some of you are involved in artificial intelligence, but you also need something called electricity. Artificial intelligence requires a lot of electricity. China finds it easier because we have environmental impact reports to do, but we will do things that no one thinks are possible. You need a lot of electricity, twice as much as our current electricity supply in the US, to take the lead. We will do this. We will use fossil fuels and nuclear power to generate electricity in an environmentally friendly way. We will create so much electricity that you will say, “Please, Mr. President, we don’t need more electricity.”
In the Midwest, they have just set up charging stations for electric cars. You know, I really like Elon. He’s great. He supports me, which is fantastic support. But not everyone has to have an electric car. I told him. So we will repeal that mandate. Some people like gasoline cars, some like hybrid cars, some like electric cars. They are all good. I think Elon is doing great, and he understands. If he doesn’t understand, he probably won’t support me.
But they built these charging stations in the Midwest. There are eight of them, costing $9 billion to build. At this rate, building charging stations nationwide would cost about $12 trillion. If these charging stations stop working, the country will have to file for bankruptcy protection. We need to use our brains, we need to be a party of common sense.
Right?
We need common sense. But we do need to produce a lot of electricity to support artificial intelligence and everything you are doing. We will produce it. We will be able to compete with China and other countries. So we will produce it.
This afternoon, I will detail my plans to ensure that America becomes the global capital of cryptocurrency and a superpower of the world of Bitcoin. We will achieve this goal. If cryptocurrency will define the future, I hope it will be mined, minted, and produced in America rather than elsewhere. If Bitcoin is to “moon” as we say, I want America to lead this trend. It will happen. You will be very pleased with me, you will be very happy.
That’s why I am proud to be the first major party candidate in American history to accept donations in Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. And let me tell you, they have donated a lot, and I am grateful. Since we announced this on May 21, we have raised $25 million, a large part of which is in Bitcoin, cryptocurrencies, and other forms of assets.
But as you know, our excitement about the future of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies is vastly different from that of our opponents. They take the old-fashioned route. But we take the middle road. In terms of campaigning, we are completely different from others. We understand it, while they don’t. They are obstructing your path.
I have made your lives much easier because the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been very harsh on you. Now, they see that you support me, and suddenly, those who were once under investigation no longer face the same scrutiny. So please say, “Thank you, President Trump.”
They are doing this because I heard some of your great geniuses talk to me about this topic. I heard Vivek say that 175 million people are involved in some form in the world of cryptocurrency and Bitcoin. 175 million. When they hear this number, they say, “At least be nicer to them before the election.”
So I have relieved a lot of people’s stress. Many people are very happy today who were not so happy three months ago.
Over the past three and a half years, the current government has waged an unprecedented war on cryptocurrency and Bitcoin. For those not in this industry, they targeted your banks, cutting off your financial services. Have you seen this situation? Yes, they have seen it. They prevented ordinary Americans from transferring money to your exchanges. They slandered us as criminals. I have also experienced this because I said the election was rigged. They said, “He should spend the rest of his life in jail for that statement.” Of course, they also said this about us, it’s really…
By the way, our election situation is very good. You know, we recently lost a candidate, Biden. You might think we lost a good person, but he was actually a bad person, to be honest. So don’t feel sad.
We have an even worse option. But I made an analogy last night. Think about this: I speak in front of a very powerful, influential, and religious group – Christians, evangelicals. And today, I am speaking to Bitcoin enthusiasts. Now I’m going to Minnesota for a rally. You might think my life is beautiful, isn’t it? But please remember, I cover a lot of areas. From religion to Bitcoin to rallies. I won’t get confused like others who would say, “God bless all those involved in the Bitcoin world.” But in reality, we are serious because you need blessings to do some amazing things.
Last night we had a wonderful time with Christians, mainly Christians, a Christian group. It was fantastic. And then we have a very big rally in Minnesota. Since 1972, we haven’t won there, it was Richard Nixon. Can you believe it? I think we are leading in Minnesota, but there is some foul play. But I think we are doing well. So we will leave here and go there for a big rally. It’s an honor to be with all of you.
Sadly, when we see the attacks on cryptocurrency, this is a larger part carried out by the same left-wing fascist elements who weaponize the government against anything that threatens their power. They did the same to me. Have you seen it? I just won a big case in Florida. Thank you very much. It’s a document case. I have the Presidential Records Act on my side. By the way, Biden also has it, but he deserves to go to jail, but we won’t prosecute him because he is incompetent. I won this case in a traditional way. It’s called winning. I want to win cases the Trump way, to win this case.
