By Tina Sanders
I am not a financial wizard by any means. That is why you won't find me living in a large mansion or driving around in an Aston Martin. You won't see me buying Cryptocurrency which I know little about. All I know: it is a digital currency used as a medium of exchange through a computer network. I don't understand how the value is determined. The cryptocurrency exchange is rife with ponzi schemes and rug-pulls.
A major rug-pull happened recently with FTX cryptocurrency exchange. U.S. Aid money for Ukraine was invested in FTX and later liquidated to avoid financial reporting in a pyramid scheme. This money increased the value of FTX crypto which would lure more investors. FTX at its peak had capital over 200 billion dollars but a few days ago it went bankrupt. At least a billion dollars has " mysteriously" disappeared. Samuel Bankman-Fried (FTX Founder) is the second largest donor to the Democrat party. He formed "Protect Our Future PAC " that spent over $1.9 million on suburban Atlanta candidate Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux (D-GA).
Both Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Rep. Chuy Garcia (D-IL) received $2,900. Other recipients include Rep. Lucy McBath (D-GA) and Salud Carajal (D-CA) who got $2900 and $5800 respectively in their tight races. Protect Our Future spent $10 million to boost Carrick Flynn (D-ORE) chances in a crowded Democratic primary. Loopholes in PACs mean that it is more money donated to campaigns with less transparency as to who is donating. FTX donated mainly to Democrats but a few Republicans also benefited. $44,000 went to the National Republican Congressional Committee which is chaired by Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN) who is a vocal crypto supporter. Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ) also benefited with a $2900 donation .
We have only scratched the surface of the FTX Bankruptcy Scandal. When clients began asking for their money as a return on their investment, they discovered that it was not there much like a pyramid scheme. We need to investigate this further and find out who knew what and why. Our Campaign finance system (especially PACs) cause a growing disconnect between candidates and the people they are supposed to represent. Super PACs allow wealthy special interests to pour more funds into a campaign and shield the donors' identities. We need better commonsense campaign finance laws to prevent other FTX scandals in the future.