Trump's Crypto Agenda: Lawmaker Challenges "Operation Choke Point 2.0"

Texas lawmaker Al Green, a Democrat and ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee's Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, criticized former US President Donald Trump for promoting a "deregulatory pro-crypto agenda" while launching a legally questionable memecoin. During a Feb. 6 hearing, Green challenged the narrative that the previous administration targeted the crypto industry, arguing that the term "Operation Choke Point 2.0" was a "fake program, never initiated."

Green contended that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and US financial regulators under the previous administration merely warned financial institutions about potential business ties to crypto firms, rather than ordering them to halt services. This claim was echoed by Shayna Olesiuk, banking policy director at Better Markets, who testified at the hearing. Green asserted that regulators' warnings did not constitute "debanking."

The Texas representative hinted that lawmakers should focus on Trump's memecoin, which he launched before taking office on Jan. 17. Neither subcommittee chair Dan Meuser nor Financial Services Committee chair French Hill mentioned the TRUMP coin in their opening statements.

The Feb. 6 hearing appeared to be based on some industry executives' claims that they had been cut off from traditional banking services due to their ties to crypto. A Freedom of Information Act lawsuit led by Coinbase revealed that the FDIC had issued letters to banks in 2022 suggesting they "pause all crypto asset-related activity."

Speaking at the hearing, Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal criticized the US government's approach as "regulation by exhaustion." He claimed the FDIC deceived the public by stating that crypto firms were entitled to the same banking services as other companies while issuing letters of concern.

The Feb. 6 hearing was the first meeting of the oversight subcommittee in the 119th session of the US Congress under a Republican-led House of Representatives and Senate. Lawmakers with the Senate Banking Committee held a similar hearing on Feb. 5, discussing debanking among marginalized groups.

In a separate hearing on Feb. 5, Rep. Green called for Trump's impeachment over the President's policy for the US to take control of the Gaza Strip. At the time of publication, congressional records did not show the Texas lawmaker had filed articles of impeachment.