Key Takeaways
- A new bill aims to prevent top US officials from profiting from personal meme coins due to concerns over the $TRUMP asset.
- The legislation would enforce penalties and is part of an effort to tackle financial exploitation by current and former officeholders.
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Rep. Sam Liccardo is introducing the Modern Emoluments and Malfeasance Enforcement (MEME) Act, which would ban the President, Vice President, members of Congress, senior officials, and their families from issuing, sponsoring, or endorsing digital assets, securities, and commodities — like the TRUMP meme token.
The proposed legislation comes amid ongoing concerns about the potential conflicts of interest and exploitation related to officials promoting or profiting from meme coins. House Democrats argue that officials should not use their positions for personal financial gain through such ventures.
Just ahead of his inauguration, Trump surprised the market with the launch of his own TRUMP coin. The token hit $13 billion in market valuation in over a day, with further gains over the next days, but took a nosedive shortly thereafter.
At press time, TRUMP traded at around $12, down 82% from its peak, per CoinGecko. The sharp decline left many investors with huge losses.
Concerns have been raised about transparency, insider trading, and foreign influence. Even some Trump-supporting crypto enthusiasts found the launch unethical.
“Let’s make corruption criminal again,” said Liccardo. “Our public offices belong to the public, not the officeholders, nor should they leverage their political authority for financial gain. The Trumps’ issuance of meme coins financially exploits the public for personal gain, and raises the specter of insider trading and foreign influence over the Executive Branch.”
The bill would impose criminal and civil penalties and includes a retroactive element targeting assets issued before the bill’s enactment. It would also cover other financial assets, including Truth Social stock.
In other words, the bill would force the President to return any profits made from the meme coin. Plus, it would allow investors to sue public officials if they lose money on a meme coin backed by them.
Slim chance
Given the current political landscape in the House of Representatives, Democratic-sponsored legislation has very little chance of passing.
Liccardo’s proposed legislation has twelve Democratic cosponsors; yet, it is unlikely to avoid an uphill battle in the Republican-controlled House.
The freshman lawmaker acknowledges that. His focus is to build support for the legislation, hoping it will pass if Democrats regain a majority.
Last month, Sen. Elizabeth Warren called for financial regulators and the government ethics office to examine Trump’s meme coins for potential violations of ethical rules and regulations.
Warren expressed concern about Trump and his wife using the presidency to generate substantial financial gains, with their net worth reportedly skyrocketing to $58 billion. She also criticized the terms of the tokens, which prevent consumers from pursuing fraud claims.
Warren warned that anyone, including leaders of hostile nations, could covertly buy these coins, potentially creating an untraceable channel of influence over the President.
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