Bitcoin mining consumes roughly the same amount of electricity as Washington state—putting pressure on our power grids and worsening the #ClimateCrisis. We need to protect our planet and crack down on environmentally wasteful crypto mining practices. https://t.co/ChKYcD82gH

— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) September 7, 2021

Next to Senator Bernie Sanders, Warren is the most influential progressive voice in the upper house. Although the senator is unable to set policy — only moderate legislation can pass this Senate — she’s very influential, and her positions are echoed by a sizable portion of the Democratic base. Those constituents who know little or nothing about cryptocurrency will likely accept her rhetoric as fully accurate. 

Warren believes that cryptocurrency is a “lousy investment” for the average person. It really doesn’t matter that she and other legislators could change the taxable status of crypto for purchasing goods with the stroke of a pen, or that cryptocurrency is a good investment for those willing and interested in educating themselves, or that crypto volatility has no impact on the uninvested. Her message to the base is simple, clear and effective: Cryptocurrency is bad for the little guy. It’s good for the rich. It’s just another tool to be used to stick it to the middle class.

Senator Ted Cruz may not be the most influential voice on the conservative side of the aisle, but he’s still a formidable politician. It’s unclear if he took up the cryptocurrency matter in reaction to Senator Warren or he simply stumbled upon an opportunity to hammer Democrats. Cruz is a long-term political opportunist who is smart and talented enough to know how to expand the base, yet he’s often ignorant about the issues that he’s for or against.

On June 9, Cruz told Fox News host Sean Hannity that he doesn’t understand Bitcoin: “It is a new

Bitcoin mining consumes roughly the same amount of electricity as Washington state—putting pressure on our power grids and worsening the #ClimateCrisis. We need to protect our planet and crack down on environmentally wasteful crypto mining practices. https://t.co/ChKYcD82gH

— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) September 7, 2021

Next to Senator Bernie Sanders, Warren is the most influential progressive voice in the upper house. Although the senator is unable to set policy — only moderate legislation can pass this Senate — she’s very influential, and her positions are echoed by a sizable portion of the Democratic base. Those constituents who know little or nothing about cryptocurrency will likely accept her rhetoric as fully accurate. 

Warren believes that cryptocurrency is a “lousy investment” for the average person. It really doesn’t matter that she and other legislators could change the taxable status of crypto for purchasing goods with the stroke of a pen, or that cryptocurrency is a good investment for those willing and interested in educating themselves, or that crypto volatility has no impact on the uninvested. Her message to the base is simple, clear and effective: Cryptocurrency is bad for the little guy. It’s good for the rich. It’s just another tool to be used to stick it to the middle class.

Senator Ted Cruz may not be the most influential voice on the conservative side of the aisle, but he’s still a formidable politician. It’s unclear if he took up the cryptocurrency matter in reaction to Senator Warren or he simply stumbled upon an opportunity to hammer Democrats. Cruz is a long-term political opportunist who is smart and talented enough to know how to expand the base, yet he’s often ignorant about the issues that he’s for or against.

On June 9, Cruz told Fox News host Sean Hannity that he doesn’t understand Bitcoin: “It is a new