Crypto Is Buying Your Democracy: Molly White breaks down meme coins, stablecoins, Bitcoins, the shadow financial system, and the $200 million campaign to gut your consumer protections
About this episode
Molly White discusses the implications of cryptocurrency on democracy and consumer protections.
I have been saying for years that cryptocurrency has the structure of a multi-level marketing scheme: a small number of people at the top make enormous sums, while large numbers of ordinary people are recruited to invest, almost always lose money, and then recruit more people. Molly is an independent researcher and writer who covers cryptocurrency and the broader technology industry. She writes the newsletter Citation Needed (citationneeded.news), runs the ongoing tracker Web3 Is Going Just Great, and operates influence.citationneeded.news , which is being relaunched as Tech Influence Watch to cover both crypto and AI campaign spending. The crypto industry emerged as a serious political force starting around 2024. Fairshake, the largest cryptocurrency super PAC, raised over $200 million in the 2024 election cycle, making it the top-funded super PAC in the country, surpassing even the MAGA super PAC (OpenSecrets data, via multiple sources including Axios and CoinDesk). As of early 2026, Fairshake has $193 million in cash on hand for the 2026 midterms. The industry’s goal was explicit: remove legislators viewed as threats to crypto interests, install legislators who would promote…
More episodes of Cults, Culture & Coercion with Dr. Steve Hassan
- God, Law, and the Cult of Power: Marci Hamilton on what it will take to restore the rule of law in an era of authoritarian religion
- She Spent $115K in a Wellness MLM with Brandie Hadfield: A new mom, an autistic baby, and a decade lost to a commercial cult
- What the Watchtower Doesn’t Want You to Know with Australian whistleblower Lara Kaput: Child labor, financial fraud, and eight types of modern slavery inside the Jehovah’s Witnesses
- Russian Disinformation From the Ground in Ukraine With Journalist Chris Sampson: An American journalist in Ukraine on active measures, AI pollution, and bottom-up resistance
- What Detransition Taught Me About Identity: Alexander Linkowski on his detransition journey, informed consent, and the illusion of self
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Cults, Culture & Coercion with Dr. Steve Hassan podcast page.