A Democratic lawmaker from California is preparing to introduce a bill aimed at preventing public officials from financially benefiting from personal meme coins.<\/p>\n
While some of former President Donald Trump’s most ardent supporters in Congress have proposed legislation to honor him—such as featuring his portrait on a $250 bill, declaring his birthday a national holiday, or even adding his image to Mount Rushmore—Democratic lawmakers are taking a different approach. They are instead focusing on the controversial $TRUMP meme coin.<\/p>\n
Launched just over a month ago, the $TRUMP cryptocurrency has experienced a sharp drop in value. Early investors quickly sold off their holdings, resulting in substantial losses for hundreds of thousands of investors and wiping out billions in market capitalization. The dramatic decline has caught the attention of lawmakers, leading to a legislative response.<\/p>\n
California Representative Sam Liccardo, a freshman Democrat<\/a>, has announced plans to introduce a bill targeting high-ranking government officials and their family members who might seek financial gain through meme coins. Liccardo outlined the key provisions of the proposed Modern Emoluments and Malfeasance Enforcement (MEME) Act.<\/p>\n If passed, this legislation would prohibit the president, vice president, members of Congress, senior executive branch officials, as well as their spouses and dependent children, from issuing, sponsoring, or endorsing digital assets, securities, futures, or commodities.<\/p>\n Liccardo has voiced concerns that both Donald Trump and former First Lady Melania Trump financially benefited from their respective meme coins, profiting alongside early investors<\/a> who initially supported the cryptocurrency.<\/p>\n The $TRUMP coin was introduced in January, just days before Trump took office, while a similar digital asset<\/a> linked to Melania Trump was released the previous week. In a statement made in July, Trump had expressed his ambition to establish the United States as the “crypto capital of the planet.”<\/p>\n Although the MEME Act faces slim chances of passing in the next two years due to Republican control of both the House and Senate, Liccardo remains determined to gather support for the bill. He contends that the Trumps’ involvement in meme coins constitutes financial exploitation of the public and raises ethical concerns, including potential insider trading and foreign influence over the Executive Branch.<\/p>\n “As public officials, we are entrusted with serving the people, not using political influence for personal financial gain,” Liccardo stated. “The issuance of these meme coins highlights the dangers of corruption and the need for stricter regulations. Let’s make corruption criminal again.”<\/p>\n The proposed legislation would prevent federal officials from engaging in financial activities that could personally benefit them. It would impose both criminal and civil penalties on violators, including a retroactive provision to address financial assets issued before the bill’s enactment. This clause would specifically target the $TRUMP coin and similar digital assets, along with financial interests such as shares in Truth Social.<\/p>\n Liccardo has already gained the support of a dozen Democratic co-sponsors as he prepares to introduce<\/a> the MEME Act on Thursday.<\/p>\n Today, I introduced the MEME Act, which prohibits top federal officials from issuing, sponsoring, or promoting a security, commodity, or digital asset with criminal and civil penalties. pic.twitter.com\/NbjmcwoEB5<\/a><\/p>\n — Rep. Sam Liccardo (@RepLiccardo) February 27, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nConcerns Over Ethical and Financial Misuse<\/h2>\n
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