A tech billionaire and prominent Democratic donor says he is parting ways with a network of influential crypto industry super PACs, claiming they are too “stupid” and “selfish” in a series of leaked emails ” and short-sightedness. interact with it.
Ron Conway, a venture capitalist who has donated generously to Democrats for years (and earned himself a lot of influence as a result), recently lambasted top members of Fairshake, a network of super PACs. Aiming to create a “clearer political alliance” and a regulatory and legal framework for the “blockchain economy”. In a series of emails released by Politico, Conway yelled at many of the group’s most prominent members, including tech stooges Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, Coinbase chief CEO Brian Armstrong and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse. What broke Conway? He appeared to be caught off guard by a covert operation tied to the PAC aimed at ousting Sherrod Brown, a prominent Democratic congressman who has criticized the cryptocurrency industry.
“$12 million [Sherrod] Conway wrote in an email that Schumer is currently spearheading a cryptocurrency-friendly bill in the Legislature. “You all know this is a ‘slap in the face’ for Senator Schumer, and it’s a ‘slap in the face’ for me because you know I’m meeting with him tomorrow in San Francisco. How short-sighted and stupid can you be?
Conway’s rage continued: “Nobody wants to tell me what you’re doing [sic] This,” he wrote. “I’m the person who has made the biggest contribution to this movement using my connections over the age of 25, but no one bothered to notify me. Sadly, I’m even a Fair Shake donor.
“Because of your selfish hidden agenda, it’s time for us to separate,” Conway continued. “This is a wake-up call for myself, I’ve been with those [do] It is unacceptable to have no shared values. …I will [sic] No more compromising yourself for association or help.
Conway added that “there’s an elephant in the room” that there are “two factions in the community: the moderates and the Donald Trump faction (Bryan and Mark).”
Historically, the crypto industry has spent a lot of money on politics, but this year is expected to break records. In fact, the crypto brothers now spend more money on the American political system than the Koch brothers. A new report from Public Citizen suggests that donations from cryptocurrency companies and supporters accounted for half of this year’s total election spending. Much of that money is going to the Republican Party, which industry bosses view as friendlier to their interests (which makes sense, given the Republican Party’s love of deregulation and corporate overreach). But cryptocurrencies also continue to flow to blue party candidates — a fact that angers some conservatives.
Although Conway has “vowed” to end support for the pro-cryptocurrency super PAC network, it is unclear whether he will do so. It’s good to send a signal in this regard (and thus, perhaps, save some face for politicians if he needs to in the future), but who knows if he’ll actually follow through. Gizmodo reached out to Conway for comment, asking if he’s willing to walk the talk.
