 | By Calder McHugh
WARREN BUFFETT CALLED CRYPTO: RAT POISON SQUARED! CHINA & OTHER NATIONS BANNED CRYPTO FOR GOOD REASONS!
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A cutout of President Donald Trump holding a Bitcoin token during the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, Nevada on Tuesday, May 27. | Bridget Bennett/Bloomberg via Getty Images | THE ART OF THE BITCOIN DEAL — Trump Media and Technology Group — the parent company of Truth Social that counts President Donald Trump as its controlling shareholder — announced today it had raised $2.5 billion from around 50 large investors . What makes the news so notable is that Trump Media will use the cash to buy cryptocurrency, creating a “bitcoin Treasury” which will serve to further advance the president’s already deep financial interest in the crypto space. It’s the latest in a series of moves aimed at increasing Trump’s stake in an industry that’s in the midst of a series of regulatory battles . Trump’s family has financially backed the crypto ventures World Liberty Financial and American Bitcoin, and Trump even rolled out his own memecoin days before the inauguration called $TRUMP. On Thursday, Trump hosted a black tie gala for $TRUMP’s biggest supporters, which sparked criticism from congressional Democrats as a pay-to-play scheme . In the hours after the event, $TRUMP plunged 16 percent . Over the course of his time in the White House, Trump has done a full 180 on the industry; in his first term, he regularly expressed skepticism about bitcoin and the digital asset space as a whole. But as he geared up for his second run for president he began to dip his toes into the world of NFTs (a unique digital token or certificate) and evangelized crypto more broadly. The newfound appreciation for crypto helped to expand his political coalition , especially among well-heeled tech players who helped to fund his third run for president. But Americans in general are still either broadly skeptical of digital assets — an October 2024 Gallup poll found that 63 percent of the country had little to no confidence in the reliability and safety of crypto — or know little about it at all. It’s a reminder that, despite the billions of dollars flowing through the industry, crypto remains something of a black box. Much of its regulatory framework has yet to be decided, which has raised significant ethics concerns around Trump’s foray into the space. In December, he put his stake in Trump Media in a blind trust operated by Donald Trump Jr. MUST READ! To better understand what all of this means — and why this upcoming cash infusion is an eye-opening step — Nightly spoke with POLITICO’s Declan Harty , a capital markets reporter who has extensively covered cryptocurrency and its regulation. This interview has been edited. Can you explain to a layperson the significance of today’s announcement from Trump Media? From a Trump Media perspective, the announcement is an indication of a new era. The company was born at a time in 2021 when the president’s political and legal future was extremely uncertain, in large part on the idea that conservatives like Trump himself needed a new social media home. (In this case, that was Truth Social.) But as we’ve seen in the year since the company went public, social-media advertising isn’t much of a booming business. The company recorded a net loss of $32 million in the first three months of this year. So, they’re venturing out in new ways like traditional finance, streaming and now, crypto. More broadly, however, the news marks the latest sign of the opportunity that the president’s businesses see in crypto. This is an industry that has been soaring of late, at least in part on surging optimism about what the Trump administration means for its future in the U.S. And many businesses, including several linked to the president himself like Trump Media, are jumping in. What exactly does a “bitcoin treasury” mean? What’s in it for Trump Media? Bitcoin treasuries are a relatively new concept on Wall Street. Made famous by billionaire Michael Saylor’s company Strategy, which was formerly known as MicroStrategy, the idea is to sell a whole lot of stock and debt to finance hoovering up a whole bunch of bitcoin. In this case, Trump Media said it’s raising $2.5 billion through selling stock and debt. The token will then sit on the company’s balance sheet, and, so long as bitcoin goes up, appreciate in value. Are there potential conflicts of interest inherent here since Donald Trump is the principal shareholder of this public company and also the president of the United States? That’s the concern. Trump owns a majority stake in Trump Media — in fact, his shares in the company are a leading source of his wealth. So, as the company’s stock price rises, the value of Trump’s stake in it does, too. And that is raising a swell of questions among critics about Trump’s motivations behind pushing to make the U.S. — in his words — “the crypto capital of the planet.” Now, that said, Trump’s stake in Trump Media has been put into a trust managed by his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and many are sure to argue that this strategy of creating a bitcoin treasury is an increasingly popular play by companies today. Does the Trump family’s aggressive moves into cryptocurrency ventures have the potential to politically polarize the still-evolving debate surrounding crypto and its regulation? Yes. Some would argue it already is. Earlier this month, Democrats blocked a procedural vote on a landmark crypto bill proposing to regulate a specific type of digital asset known as stablecoins, in part over concerns about Trump and his businesses’ interests in the industry. Whether that continues to be the case, however, is less clear. Lawmakers ultimately were able to come together on a deal to push through the bill, which now is set for a final vote in the weeks ahead. But some crypto industry officials are certainly worried about this all bubbling back up again in the future. What are Trump’s broader goals in this space, and how does this latest deal fit into that? Ultimately, Trump has talked about making the U.S. a hub for digital assets once and for all. During the last administration, crypto came under intense fire from Wall Street regulators who alleged that many companies were violating decades-old investor protections. But Trump has already changed the tide significantly, with his Securities and Exchange Commission dropping most of the crypto lawsuits and investigations that were brought under its former chair, Gary Gensler. Now, the administration appears to want to finally provide crypto the “regulatory clarity” that executives and lobbyists have long called for — a push that stands to further entrench this extremely volatile and high-flying industry into mainstream finance. Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at nightly@politico.com . Or contact tonight’s author at cmchugh@politico.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @calder_mchugh .
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— Trump team pauses new student visa interviews as it weighs expanding social media vetting: The Trump administration is weighing requiring all foreign students applying to study in the United States to undergo social media vetting — a significant expansion of previous such efforts, according to a cable obtained by POLITICO. In preparation for such required vetting, the administration is ordering U.S. embassies and consular sections to pause scheduling new interviews for such student visa applicants, according to the cable, dated today and signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. excerpt: In preparation for such required vetting, the administration is ordering U.S. Embassies and consular sections to pause scheduling new interviews for such student visa applicants, according to the cable, dated Tuesday and signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “Effective immediately, in preparation for an expansion of required social media screening and vetting, consular sections should not add any additional student or exchange visitor (F, M, and J) visa appointment capacity until further guidance is issued septel, which we anticipate in the coming days,” the cable states. (“Septel” is State Department shorthand for “separate telegram.”) The administration had earlier imposed some social media screening requirements, but those were largely aimed at returning students who may have participated in protests against Israel’s actions in Gaza. The cable doesn’t directly spell out what the future social media vetting would screen for, but it alludes to executive orders that are aimed at keeping out terrorists and battling antisemitism. Many State Department officials have complained privately for months that past guidance — for, say, vetting students who may have participated in campus protests — has been vague. It’s unclear, for example, whether posting photos of a Palestinian flag on an X account could force a student to undergo additional scrutiny. The administration has used a variety of rules to target universities, especially elite ones such as Harvard, that it sees as too liberal and accuses of allowing antisemitism to flourish on their campuses. At the same time, it is carrying out immigration crackdowns that have swept up a number of students. Spokespeople for the State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The news was met with frustration in much of the higher education community. NAFSA: Association of International Educators, a group that advocates for foreign students, decried the decision. The group’s CEO, Fanta Aw, said it unfairly cast aspersions on hardworking students. “The idea that the embassies have the time, the capacity and taxpayer dollars are being spent this way is very problematic,” Aw said. “International students are not a threat to this country. If anything, they’re an incredible asset to this country.” Meta, which owns Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, declined to comment. Spokespeople for other platforms, including Google, Snap, X, TikTok, Discord, Bluesky and Reddit, also did not respond to questions about the policy. ****RFK JR ANTI-VAX **** — The CDC is no longer recommending Covid vaccines for healthy children, pregnant women: The CDC is no longer recommending that “healthy” children and pregnant women get vaccinated against Covid-19, according to a post on X from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The CDC had recommended the vaccine to everyone at least six months old, including during pregnancy. Kennedy has long said that Covid vaccines are not safe, despite the medical consensus. The top U.S. vaccine regulator, Vinay Prasad, has said that the cost-benefit of the shots doesn’t make sense for some groups, such as young men, who face an elevated risk of heart inflammation or myocarditis. POLITICO first reported last month that Kennedy was considering pulling the CDC’s Covid-19 vaccine recommendation for children. — Trump threatens to slash federal funding from California over youth transgender sports participation: President Donald Trump threatened to strip federal funding from California and bashed Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom for allegedly violating his administration’s executive order on transgender athlete participation in school sports. Trump’s remarks are seemingly targeted at a transgender high school athlete from Southern California, who won two regional titles in the girls triple and long jump earlier this month. ***RFK JR: HUH?***** — RFK Jr. threatens to bar government scientists from publishing in leading medical journals: HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. threatened to stop government scientists from publishing their work in major medical journals on a podcast today as part of his escalating war on institutions he says are influenced by pharmaceutical companies. Speaking on the “Ultimate Human” podcast, Kennedy said the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of the American Medical Association, and The Lancet, three of the most influential medical journals in the world, were “corrupt” and publish studies funded and approved by pharmaceutical companies.
***COLLEGE FOOTBALL DIMWIT TOMMY TUPPERWARE WILL HAVE TO LIVE IN ALABAMA!**** — Tuberville announces Alabama governor run: Sen. Tommy Tuberville is running for Alabama governor in 2026. The Alabama Republican and former college football head coach launched his campaign website today, ending weeks of speculation about his ambitions for the state’s highest office. Tuberville is looking to succeed termed-out Republican Gov. Kay Ivey. He is immediately the frontrunner to win the seat in the deep red state, with other potential Republican candidates opting against a campaign. His decision also sets up an open Senate race in Alabama in the midterms.
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People watch a large Bulgarian flag ahead of a race near the city of Smolyan. | Nikolay Doychinov/AFP via Getty Images | BULGARIA ADOPTS THE EURO — The EU will shortly approve Bulgaria’s bid to adopt the euro as early as Jan. 1, 2026, making it the 21st member of the bloc’s currency union. After years of waiting, several officials told POLITICO that the European Commission and the European Central Bank (ECB) are expected to finally give their blessing in a report that will be published next Wednesday. Bulgaria’s euro accession would help the country boost trade with the rest of the bloc, cut transaction costs and strengthen its clout in Brussels. For decades, the lev — the local currency — was pegged to the euro but the country had no say over the ECB’s monetary policy decisions as it was not a member. If Bulgaria joins the single currency as planned in 2026, Bulgaria’s central banker will take a formal seat in the ECB’s Governing Council. NON LINGUA FRANCA — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez suffered a major political setback in the EU’s General Affairs Council today, where national representatives declined to back his proposal to add Catalan, Basque and Galician to the bloc’s list of official languages . The loss could imperil Sánchez’s ability to pass a fresh budget bill and meet NATO’s demands for increased defense spending. In exchange for key support needed to form a new minority government, in 2023 Sánchez promised the Catalan separatist Junts party that he would get Catalan, Basque and Galician added to the list of the bloc’s 24 official languages. Spain’s linguistic recognition bid has long raised eyebrows — for a number of reasons. Making Catalan, Basque and Galician official within the institutions would require the translation of all EU laws, proposals and decisions — past, present and future — into those languages and cost millions of euros in additional translation and interpretation fees. Moreover, the move could lead other linguistic minorities — like Breton or Corsican speakers in France, or Russian-speaking communities in the Baltic states — to demand similar recognition. After at least seven countries expressed strong doubts about the proposal during last week’s meeting of the bloc’s ambassadors, Spanish diplomats produced draft regulation tailored to address those concerns.
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| | | TWO SQUARE MEALS — Modern life is organized around the idea that we should eat three meals a day. But intermittent fasting, where food intake is restricted to an eight-hour window, is suddenly becoming a huge area of research. Giving our bodies at least 12 hours a day without food allows the digestive system to rest, says Emily Manoogian, clinical researcher at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California. And intermittent fasting is more in line with how our bodies have evolved, argues Rozalyn Anderson, an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin. It gives the body a break so it’s able to store food and get energy to where it needs to be, and trigger the mechanism to release energy from our body stores. Jessica Bradley explores the question of how many meals a day is best for our health for BBC Future.
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On this date in 1990: Pope John Paul II waves to young people assembled on the last day of his three day visit to the Maltese Islands. | Roy Latkey/AP | Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here . | |
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