Bitcoin Supporter Serve as Chief Economist to US Vice President

On February 14, US Vice President Mike Pence has chosen well-known libertarian and Bitcoin advocate Mark Calabria as his chief economist.

(Photo: US Vice President Mike Pence)

It is reported that Calabria previously served on the Senate Banking Committee, after which he served as director of financial regulation research at the Cato Institute. Calabria is also an active advocate of free markets, housing reform, and alternative currencies.

(Photo: Mark Calabria)

Calabria has expressed his support for Bitcoin on many occasions. In an interview, Calabria said:

“I’m an economist, not a technologist, and I’m very excited about Bitcoin, just as I’m interested in alternative currencies. Maybe I’ll be more interested in blockchain.”

Furthermore, Calabria even admitted in 2015 that a significant portion of the Cato Institute community supports Bitcoin to varying degrees. “In fact, several even own some Bitcoin, and some own other altcoins,” he said.

Many members of the Trump administration are Bitcoin supporters

Mark Calabria is not the first Bitcoin advocate to join the Trump administration. Many members of the Trump administration are friendly to Bitcoin, which is the main reason why many Bitcoin enthusiasts are optimistic about President Trump.

One of them is Peter Thiel, the PayPal co-founder who has been a member of the Trump transition team for more than a year and has invested millions of dollars in bitcoin businesses over the years.

Senator Mick Mulvaney, also known as the “Bitcoin Congressman,” has been selected as President Trump’s budget director. Mulvaney has been actively promoting Bitcoin education in Washington in recent years.

Most notably, perhaps, is Balaji Srinivasan, an executive at venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and founder of bitcoin startup 21.co, who is now vying to become head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

In addition, the U.S. government has taken other steps to better understand blockchain and its industry, such as the Congressional Blockchain Commission initiated by Congressmen Jared Polis and David Schweikert.

In 2015, Calabria expressed his concerns about Bitcoin regulation, saying at the time:

“I don’t think the bitcoin community should be complacent about the current regulatory environment. There are certainly worse scenarios out there.”

It is reported that the U.S. Congressional Blockchain Policymaking Committee hopes to improve the way to regulate cryptocurrencies through Bitcoin and blockchain technology education. Hopefully, the liberalism and laissez-faire attitude advocated by Calabria can help legislators establish a wise Bitcoin regulatory policy in the near future.

Would Mark Calabria as Chief Economist help drive Bitcoin adoption? Would this be good for the U.S. economy? Share your thoughts!