In a controversial move during the Super Bowl LX pre-game show on Fox Corporation, U.S. President Donald Trump appeared in a video alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, urging viewers to donate to his campaign using cryptocurrency with the claim that their money would be "doubled." The video, which lacked any disclosure about the use of artificial intelligence, was immediately criticized for potentially being a deepfake, raising concerns about violations of the 2026 campaign transparency rules that mandate disclosure of synthetic media.
The crypto community reacted with significant backlash on social media platform X, labeling the appeal as reminiscent of an "online scam video" rather than a legitimate political message. This incident highlights a broader shift in cryptocurrency marketing from the hype-driven "Crypto Bowl" era of 2022 towards a more cautious approach emphasizing trust and regulatory compliance in 2026.
Simultaneously, confusion spread in crypto markets following remarks by CNBC host Jim Cramer, who claimed on Squawk on the Street that President Trump planned to "fill the Bitcoin reserve" by purchasing Bitcoin at the $60,000 price level. However, these claims are unfounded. While President Trump signed an executive order in 2025 directing the creation of a strategic Bitcoin reserve, the order did not establish the reserve itself. The process requires congressional approval, which has not been granted, and the recent stablecoin legislation and broader crypto market structure bill moving through the Senate lack provisions for such a fund.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent explicitly confirmed last week that he has no authority to bail out Bitcoin or direct purchases, and the executive order itself rejected using taxpayer money to buy cryptocurrency. Instead, the order focused on halting the sale of seized assets from criminal cases. Current U.S. government Bitcoin holdings, estimated by blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence at approximately 328,000 BTC (worth roughly $23 billion), originate entirely from criminal seizures—including at least 127,000 BTC from a single forfeiture case—and not from active market purchases. Arkham's on-chain data shows no evidence of recent government accumulation.
The White House crypto adviser, Patrick Witt, has declined to share the exact amount of government holdings. Legislative efforts, including those by retiring Senator Cynthia Lummis, to create a mechanism for non-taxpayer-funded Bitcoin purchases have not advanced. This series of events underscores the current gap between political rhetoric and the legal and practical realities of federal cryptocurrency policy.
