United States Congressman Brad Sherman, who has long been one of the biggest opponents of cryptocurrencies, commented on the recent landmark ruling in the Ripple (XRP) case against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), calling the verdict “ridiculous”.
It seems many US government officials are still in shock that Ripple notched a resounding win against the SEC. Out of all those people, one individual in particular, stands out. Congressman Sherman has always criticized the digital assets industry, calling for a prohibition on U.S. citizens from buying or mining cryptocurrencies.
Previously, the congressman had also remarked of the supporters of initial coin offerings that “charlatans and scammers have always favored decentralized new enterprises.”Given his stance on crypto, the recent comments do not come as a surprise.
Brad Sherman Brands XRP as Security
On July 26, Sherman took to Twitter to discredit the ruling by U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres that Ripple did not violate federal securities law by selling its XRP token on public exchanges. He branded the court’s decision as absurd.
🚨NEW: @BradSherman calls the @Ripple outcome “ridiculous”, criticizing the judge’s ruling that XRP is “sometimes a security and sometimes not.”
Watch the markup live here👇🏼https://t.co/KqfDqR9LCM
— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) July 26, 2023
The politician was critical of the judge’s ruling, contending that XRP is always a security, contrary to the court’s interpretation that it can sometimes be a security and sometimes not. The controversial comments from the California Democrat came up yesterday during the House Financial Services Committee’s efforts to markup legislation to provide clear rules for the crypto industry.
Known for his scathing attacks on the crypto industry, Sherman, set his sights on Bitcoin (BTC) creator Satoshi Nakamoto, calling him “Saratoshi Nagamoto”. He also stated his belief that Nakamoto was not innovative.
Sherman’s comments did not sit well with several people, provoking a heated debate within the cryptocurrency community. One user took a jibe at the statement, comparing it with fried food quoting, “Sometimes fried food gives you heartburn and sometimes fried food doesn’t give you heartburn.”
Others bashed the congressman for his binary view of XRP as solely a security asset, arguing that Sherman’s statements reflect a lack of comprehensive understanding of the complexity of digital assets and their various applications.
@BradSherman sometimes fried food gives you heartburn and sometimes fried food doesn’t give you heart burn.
— Jeremy.Benedict (@JeremyBenedic86) July 26, 2023
An Ugly Secret
The congressman has always thrashed the digital assets space with unwavering conviction. However, there seems to be a deep secret hiding behind the harsh criticisms. According to OpenSecrets.org, some of Sherman’s biggest donors are big banks and mainstream financial institutions, the same interests threatened by the rise of cryptocurrency.
This supports why the US politician persists in seeking to ban cryptocurrency. The blanket ban on digital assets would serve the interests of Sherman’s biggest donors, including others, whose interests may have been adversely impacted by the growing influence of cryptocurrency.
