Our August #bitcoin meetups are already off the charts! 🔥🍻

GM fellow money launderers, let’s start the week with some great news.

The House has passed the „Financial Technology Protection Act of 2023“, which will establish an „independent working group“ consisting of representatives from the CIA, the Department of Homeland Security, and the FBI as well as representatives from „Blockchain Intelligence“ to report on and propose regulation and legislation to combat the use of „digital assets and other relating technologies“ in money laundering and terrorist financing.

The Bill aims to „provide a forum for engagement between federal law enforcement and intelligence professionals, and private sector technologists and researchers“ – It’s primary concerns lie "with digital asset platforms that have 'substantially deficient' anti-money laundering programs that operate outside of the U.S.".

In case it isn't clear, the Financial Technology Protection Act is the fox guarding the hen house. If the Bill becomes law, we should all get ready for some extraordinarily „independent“ findings on the use of Bitcoin in money laundering and terrorism.

Full Story:

Those of you who have paid close attention to Trump's speech at Bitcoin 2024 may have noticed that the former President – accidentally or intentionally – appears to have given away a lot more on his plans for the future of Bitcoin than meets the eye.

Despite his assurances to protect open source development and self-custody in the US, Trump is first and foremost a national security president, highlighted by his remarks on terrorism and immigration. A loosening of AML/CFT laws, which currently see several open-source developers under indictment, seems unlikely (though a democrat law enforcement officer in the White House may arguably not do us any better).

During Trump's past presidency, the US passed the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act, which increased penalties for AML/CFT offenses and established beneficial ownership requirements for LLCs to FinCEN.

While Trump vetoed the NDAA, it appears that he did not do so due to the AMLA2020, but rather because the NDAA kept Trump from his crusade to repeal Section 230 of the Communication Decency Act, which protects Internet Service Providers from liability for information hosted and transmitted.

According to Trump, Section 230 is a "national security risk" which "will make our intelligence virtually impossible to conduct".

If you had hoped that a Trump presidency would reduce the risks of developers being held liable for "illicit activity", you may do best in thinking again – "Broadcasting" 'illicit transactions' is precisely what Samourai Wallet currently stands accused of, which would hardly be arguable under the striking of Section 230.

Between incoherent ramblings on god, AI, and electric cars, Trump essentially used his 50-minute speaking slot to introduce The Bitcoin Dollar between the lines: a CBDC alternative to expand US hegemony beyond the petrodollar system directly into consumer wallets across the planet.

Don't forget that the vast space between your ears is intelligence's field of play. For Trump, Bitcoin is merely a tool to "extend the dominance of the US Dollar to new frontiers all around the world", and if his speech showed us anything, its that you are nothing more than another pawn at the end of the identity politics chessboard, where a banner hangs that reads: Congratulations, you’ve been played.

This Rage Weekly is out featuring a full opinion on the much anticipated Trump speech at Bitcoin 2024. Subscribe for free or read all issues online:

My favorite current rock band is the Warning, for probably three years straight now. Three young Mexican women that know what they're doing, especially the singer.