There is no force on the planet with greater capacity to devastate the blockchain industry than the U.S., Senator Ted Cruz said today at the North American Blockchain Summit. 

Cruz warned about the “very real threat” of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CDBC). “I have a great deal of trepidation that the Federal Reserve is going to try to do this unilaterally,” Cruz said. “Jay Powell is getting a lot of pressure from Janet Yellen and Elizabeth Warren to go down this road.”

Earlier this year, Cruz introduced legislation that prohibits a CBDC. He told the audience to go back and look at the first version of what the administration of President Joe Biden did with the Build Back Better Framework, which Cruz called “Build Back Broke.” 

“The first version of the legislation included a requirement on the banks that they report every single financial transaction every American made in excess of $400,” he said. “That’s what they want – the federal government having a record of every single economic transaction in America. That’s what they’re hoping to get out of a CBDC.” 

Cruz believes CBDCs are a twofer. There’s the control and the possible regulatory assault “designed to try to put a lot of people in this room out of business,” he said. 

“China hates Bitcoin for the same reason Elizabeth Warren hates Bitcoin: because they can’t control it,” Cruz said. There’s the economic freedom piece, but also the deep antipathy to the use of energy, with voices on the left saying Bitcoin mining is immoral, he added. 

What DC doesn’t get about the grid 

Beyond blockchain’s ideals, Cruz said he’s bullish on the technology because it represents jobs, which is his number one priority. Texas is home to the largest Bitcoin mining operation in the world. 

“There are a lot of places in the world where the wind blows, or the sun shines, but there are no electrical power transmission lines. With Bitcoin mining, you can erect a windmill or solar array and begin reaping economic rewards almost immediately in terms of mining. This enables you to have a rate of return that funds the expansion to eventually run electrical transmission lines. That functions as a tool for venture capital for new investment in renewable energy,” he said.  

More from the conference: Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: “Decentralization is Democracy” 

He also used the example of natural gas being flared in parts of West Texas because there’s no transmission equipment to take it to market. “Bitcoin mining enables you to capture that flared natural gas and use it to generate Bitcoin, which in turn helps the environment.”

Senator Cruz highlighted the benefits to the electrical grid. “If you have a weather emergency, the beauty of Bitcoin mining is it can be shut off and in a fraction of a second. It functions again, essentially as a battery – being able to instantaneously make that power available to heat or cool homes, schools, hospitals, or businesses in times of emergency. This value for grid resilience is enormously underappreciated,” he said. 

The Senator ended his keynote and the summit’s last day with a promise. “I give you my word that I’m going to keep fighting every force I have against the federal government coming after and trying to eliminate the future of Bitcoin.” 

“I want to make the state of Texas to be the single most favorable location on the face of the planet for the blockchain industry… and keep Texas Texas,” he said.