CZ pardon: Democrat pushes bill to ban public officials from crypto

The pardon granted to former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) was well received in the crypto space but not so much in the Democrat camp.

Democratic congressman on 27 October revealed in an interview that he’s sponsoring a bill to ban elected officials from owning or creating cryptocurrencies as a result of the pardon.

Not all true

Khanna referred to the pardon as illegal, adding that it was blatant corruption. He added that CZ was involved in money laundering and was in jail for four years, which is not accurate.

“You’ve got a foreign billionaire who was basically engaged in money laundering, having money go to Hamas, having money go to Iran, having money go to child abusers. He was convicted, he served four years in prison, and then he petitions for a pardon from Donald Trump after funneling money to terrorists.”

Perhaps the most daring claim was that CZ obtained his pardon by supporting World Liberty Financial, a crypto company with strong ties to the Trump family.

He also alleged that CZ has agreed to finance Trump’s stablecoin as part of the conditions for securing the pardon, hence the need for legislation to stop elected officials from owning cryptocurrencies and accepting such offers from foreigners.

Trump’s crypto support attacked

The bill hits directly at the heart of Trump’s involvement with cryptocurrencies, beginning from the campaign stage when he openly declared support for the industry.

Trump, who also launched his own cryptocurrency known as TRUMP shortly after assuming office has been criticized by Democrats since, and Khanna isn’t the only one speaking out.

Senator Elizabeth Warren who has been a vocal critic of cryptocurrency and the president’s involvement in it has also alleged that pardon was aimed at enriching him.

Warren is supported by Senator Adam Schiff who had proposed a bill to bar Trump from getting involved with crypto earlier this year.