How Crypto Corruption Took Over Washington

The Time of Monsters
/ May 11, 2025
How Crypto Corruption Took Over Washington
On this episode of The Time of Monsters, Jacob Silverman on why it’s hard to regulate the high tech ponzi economics.
Jeet Heer
X (Twitter)
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Listen OnApple PodcastsListen OnGoogle PodcastsListen OnSpotifyListen OnCastboxListen OnPODCHASERHow Crypto Corruption Took Over Washington | Time of Monsters with Jeet HeerbyThe Nation MagazineOn this episode of The Time of Monsters, Jacob Silverman on why it’s hard to regulate the high tech ponzi the last few years, crypto-currency has emerged as a political powerhouse, thanks to tens of billions in campaign donations. As Jacob Silverman reports in a recent feature in The Nation, “crypto, despite being a relative flop commercially, has infiltrated American politics.” This is most bluntly obvious in Donald Trump, who has become a crypto king in corrupt schemes that have enriched him and his family in billions of dollars. But almost as corrupt are the members of congress, of both parties, reluctant to regulate crypto. I talked to Jacob about the dangers crypto poses to the American economy and to American democracy. Advertising Inquiries: & Opt-Out:
A cartoon image of US President Donald Trump with Bitcoin tokens at a Coinhero store in Hong Kong, China, on Friday, March 7, 2025.
(Leung Man Hei / Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Over the last few years, crypto currency has emerged as a political powerhouse, thanks to tens of billions in campaign donations. As Jacob Silverman reports in a recent feature in The Nation, “crypto, despite being a relative flop commercially, has infiltrated American politics.” This is most bluntly obvious in Donald Trump, who has become a crypto king in corrupt schemes that have enriched him and his family in billions of dollars. But almost as corrupt are the members of Congress, of both parties, reluctant to regulate crypto. I talked to Jacob about the dangers crypto poses to the American economy and to American democracy.
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The Nation PodcastsHere's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.
Listen OnApple PodcastsListen OnGoogle PodcastsListen OnSpotifyListen OnCastboxListen OnPODCHASERHow Crypto Corruption Took Over Washington | Time of Monsters with Jeet HeerbyThe Nation MagazineOn this episode of The Time of Monsters, Jacob Silverman on why it’s hard to regulate the high tech ponzi the last few years, crypto-currency has emerged as a political powerhouse, thanks to tens of billions in campaign donations. As Jacob Silverman reports in a recent feature in The Nation, “crypto, despite being a relative flop commercially, has infiltrated American politics.” This is most bluntly obvious in Donald Trump, who has become a crypto king in corrupt schemes that have enriched him and his family in billions of dollars. But almost as corrupt are the members of congress, of both parties, reluctant to regulate crypto. I talked to Jacob about the dangers crypto poses to the American economy and to American democracy. Advertising Inquiries: & Opt-Out:
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Jeet Heer is a national affairs correspondent for The Nation and host of the weekly Nation podcast, The Time of Monsters. He also pens the monthly column “Morbid Symptoms.” The author of In Love with Art: Francoise Mouly’s Adventures in Comics with Art Spiegelman (2013) and Sweet Lechery: Reviews, Essays and Profiles (2014), Heer has written for numerous publications, including The New Yorker, The Paris Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, The American Prospect, The Guardian, The New Republic, and The Boston Globe.
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