Trump’s Economy Makes Michael Novogratz ‘More Bullish’ on Bitcoin

[Magician]

By CCN: Go right ahead lefties with your monetary policies. You’re rallying crypto bulls. And you right leaners who are calling for lower interest rates are as good as gold for crypto, too.

That’s the message from former hedge fund manager Michael Novogratz. The bitcoin bull weighed in on monetary policies being bandied about that are essentially making the case for crypto. Novogratz is the CEO of cryptocurrency merchant bank Galaxy Digital.

In a tweet this weekend, he pointed to calls for interest rate cuts being made by Vice President Mike Pence as well as former Fed contenders Stephen Moore and Herman Cain. While nominated by Trump, Moore and Cain eventually withdrew their names from consideration.

Then there’s the controversial Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has proposed as a way to fund her Green New Deal. She is the gift that keeps on giving. For the crypto space, her push for MMT does just that.

TO CUT OR NOT TO CUT

The Federal Reserve decided to leave interest rates unchanged last week. This was disappointing to Pence and others who see the strong economy as one reason rates should be cut. Pence recently told CNBC:

“I think it might be time for us to consider lowering interest rates. We just don’t see any inflation in this economy at all. We’re seeing jobs being created all over the country; that should be an encouragement to every American and also to people that operate our monetary policies.”

President Trump sharply criticized the Fed’s move last December to raise rates. He, along with his administration’s economic adviser Larry Kudlow and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, has long championed lower interest rates.

The constant worry is, “what happens when there is a recession?” The Federal Reserve’s toolbox that includes quantitative easing (QE) may not do the trick to stop the bleeding from a slowing economy.

BRING IT, MMT ZEALOTS

The basic idea behind MMT is that a government that issues its own money can never fail to meet its obligations because it can simply print money to cover them.

However, critics of MMT charge it could result in an inflationary spiral. The policy doesn’t account for a scenario where too much money chases too few goods causing inflation. Governments would have to raise taxes to suppress inflationary pressure.

The policy began making headlines this spring when Ocasio-Cortez started pushing it to pay for her $93 trillion Green New Deal. As reported by CCN, the idea, which has been regarded as a borderline lunatic one, is making a serious comeback into the political and economic conversation.

Still, it may be the future of US economic theory, said hedge fund manager Ray Dalio, the founder of Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund.

That’s just fine for crypto bulls like Michael Novogratz.

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