[NEWS] Cryptocurrency advocate DeSantis withdraws from US presidential election

On the 21st, Ron DeSantis, a cryptocurrency advocate who advocates a ban on CBDCs (central bank digital currencies), announced that he was withdrawing from the US presidential election, saying that he had no clear path to victory. He said that he would support former President Donald Trump from now on.

Florida Governor DeSantis was seen as a threat to Trump as a leading Republican candidate in the US presidential election.

With DeSantis withdrawing from the race ahead of the New Hampshire primary election on the 23rd, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley will be Trump's biggest rival.

At the Iowa caucuses on the 15th, DeSantis placed second, but was defeated by Trump by a large margin of 30 points. In response to this result, DeSantis said he was faced with the question, "Why continue (the election campaign)?" Later, on the 21st, he concluded that "if there is no clear path to victory, there is no point in continuing to fight."

In a video posted on X (formerly Twitter), DeSantis said, "Today, I am suspending my campaign activities," and added, "It is clear that Trump is better than Biden, the incumbent." He continued, "I signed a pledge to support the Republican candidate, and I will honor that pledge. We cannot go back to the old Republican Party, so we will support Trump."

Positive about crypto assets, but tough on CBDC

DeSantis is known to be a crypto asset proponent. In 2022, he allocated a budget to activities related to the promotion of crypto assets and blockchain in the state budget.

He also stated that when he became president, he would defend crypto assets including Bitcoin (BTC), saying, "I will end the war on regulations waged by the Democratic Party to allow transactions."

On the other hand, DeSantis is firmly of the opinion that CBDC should be banned. When asked about CBDCs at a rally held in Iowa in July last year, he flatly denied their existence, saying, "If I become president, I will immediately ban CBDCs. That's it. It's not going to happen in this country."

DeSantis has also signed a bill to ban the use of CBDCs as currency in Florida. He claims that CBDCs threaten the privacy of citizens and could lead to absolute government control. He also said that he would ban the use of overseas CBDCs, saying that they would lead to a large-scale transfer of power from consumers to central authorities.

Trump also recently expressed his firm opposition to CBDCs. Trump said, "I will never allow the introduction of CBDCs," and declared, "I will absolutely block them from coming to the United States."

Reference:DeSantis X
Image: Shutterstock

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