Tether CEO talks stablecoin, new RSC podcast episode, and more!

Tether CEO talks stablecoin and China; Heard on the Hill; and more!

May 8, 2025

Let’s dive in.

1. INTERVIEW: "We are doing God's work": Tether's CEO talks stablecoin, China, and dollar diplomacy

2. Heard on the Hill

3. EXCLUSIVE: Reps. Van Duyne, Gill, and Houchin are optimistic on extending Trump tax cuts

4. EXCLUSIVE: Joe Biden's record drags down Democrat in new ad

5. SCOOP: Inside Stephanie Bice and Markwayne Mullin's Oklahoma town hall

6. K STREET, 10,000 FEET: Conservative groups urge Congress to ensure that DOJ has access to full antitrust funds

7. OPINIONATED: Eric Wilson on how to fix Republicans’ small dollar woes

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INTERVIEW: "We are doing God's work": Tether's CEO talks stablecoin, China, and dollar diplomacy

by Matthew Foldi

THE LOWDOWN:

• Ten years ago, Tether was an upstart tech company that had coined a new technology called “stablecoin,” a cryptocurrency tied directly to the value of the U.S. dollar.

• While Tether itself tries to stay out of politics, Ardoino didn’t pull any punches about how their technology places it on a collision course with China as they attempt to prop up the Yuan as the world’s reserve currency, the disastrous Biden administration, or his high hopes for President Donald Trump’s vision for the cryptocurrency industry.

• Tether aims to spread dollar dominance worldwide by providing access to digital dollars in countries where inflation runs rampant or in places where people do not have access to the banking system.

• In this brave new world, Tether is able to reach what Ardoino thinks is its full potential — and it is helping American dollar diplomacy in the process.

Ten years ago, Tether was an upstart tech company that had coined a new technology called “stablecoin,” a cryptocurrency tied directly to the value of the U.S. dollar.

Now, it is one of the largest operators in the entire crypto space, and its CEO, Paolo Ardoino, spoke with the Washington Reporter about how he got into the space, and where he thinks it’s going.

While Tether itself tries to stay out of politics, Ardoino didn’t pull any punches about how their technology places it on a collision course with China as they attempt to prop up the Yuan as the world’s reserve currency, the disastrous Biden administration, or his high hopes for President Donald Trump’s vision for the cryptocurrency industry.

Tether aims to spread dollar dominance worldwide by providing access to digital dollars in countries where inflation runs rampant or in places where people do not have access to the banking system. That means building physical “kiosks in Africa, bodegas in central South America, and a lot of touch points in Asia.”

In fact, if Tether were a country, it would be the 19th largest holder of U.S. debt, expanding Treasury demand beyond traditional buyers and thereby reinforcing the strength of the Dollar and the U.S. economy.

Under President Joe Biden, the crypto industry mostly dealt with “law enforcement…We collaborated already with the Department of Justice, the FBI and so on. But when it came to the last administration, look at the SEC, I mean, it was a disaster.”

“And so I must say that not just us, but every company in the industry, was fearing for its own future, given the past administration,” Tether said.

However, Ardoino couldn’t be more excited to work with President Donald Trump and with his top administration figures — including David Sacks and Bo Hines, who are running point for much of the administration’s crypto policies.

Heard on the Hill

• DC’S NEXT TOP LOBBYIST: Don’t forget to nominate your friends, loved ones, respected coworkers, or that very influential lobbyist you heard of for the Washington Reporter’s list of the most influential advocates in our nation’s capital! To submit a nomination, please provide the nominee’s name, affiliation, and a brief explanation of why they deserve a spot. Submissions should be emailed to matthew@washingtonreporter.news with the subject line “NOMINATION FOR INFLUENTIAL ADVOCATE.”

• DONALD OF ARABIA: President Trump is hosting a joint reception with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud in Saudi Arabia for CEOs and companies.

• PROM NIGHT: Secretary of State Marco Rubio brought the house down at the 21st Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute & Leadership Awards, also known as “Latino prom” by many of its attendees. Rubio received the organization’s Lifetime Leadership Award for his “exceptionally impactful services to the Hispanic community of the United States.” One attendee told the Reporter that he “gave an unbuttoned and rather charming acceptance speech and quipped the lifetime award could be preemptive because ‘you don’t know what [else] I’m going to do in the next 3 years.’” Rubio, who is currently wearing many hats in the Trump administration, revealed that he has another job he has at least one eye on: “Do you know you get a uniform if you're Surgeon General? I wanted it, but they had given it away.”

• OK NEWS: Sen. James Lankford (R., Okla.) hosted a book signing for his new book, Turnaround: America's Revival, this week. Lankford’s book was published through Newsmax’s publishing company, so it was no surprise that the network’s top talent turned up. Greta Van Susteren and Rob Schmitt moderated the event; also spotted were Mike Carter, Bob Sellers, Kelly Sadler, Alana Austin, and Mimi Barnes.

• INDEPENDENCE DAY: As Israel celebrated its Independence Day this week, the Israeli Embassy hosted a series of celebratory events that featured many top Trump administration officials. Its Monday evening reception included Secretary Doug Burgum, Secretary Chris Wright, Envoy Steve Witkoff, and others. The audience also included the Zionist Organization of America’s Mort Klein, Chabad’s Rabbi Levi Shemtov, Omri and Merav Ceren, Doug Feith, Roger Zakheim, and Bonnie Glick and Paul Foldi.

• RAVE REVIEWS: Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy’s decision to allocate billions of dollars to modernizing America’s air traffic control system is already getting praised by the industry. Airlines for America’s CEO Nicholas Calio joined Duffy at the announcement, and he noted that he is “pleased that the Secretary has identified the priorities of what must be done to maintain safety and remain a leader in air navigation services. We applaud the Administration’s budget request of $4 billion for FAA’s technology and facilities account (F&E), which is higher than ever before.”

• NOT ON YOUR SIDE? Top Department of Justice officials got a letter this week from Consumers’ Research, outlining how Nationwide “repeatedly reaffirmed that DEI is in its DNA and its actions,” which the group argues runs counter to President Trump’s anti-DEI executive orders.

• FILIBUSTERING: Amidst a Democratic filibuster of bipartisan stablecoin legislation, Sen. John Thune’s communications director, Ryan Wrasse, noted that “just a few months ago, Dems were literally campaigning on a platform to abolish the filibuster, but since being relegated to the minority, they've been using it regularly.”

• MAZEL TOV: EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin hosted a Mezuzah and Torah ceremony, featuring the “Hebrew hammer,” Rep. Randy Fine (R., Fla.), Rabbi Levi Shemtov, and others.

• FACT CHECK: Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R., La.) team pushed back on a claim from Rep. Thomas Massie (R., Ky.) that Congress “quietly canceled” a vote on rescission this week. “No votes on rescissions were ‘cancelled’ this week,” Johnson’s press secretary, Athina Lawson, wrote. “The Speaker has repeatedly expressed his commitment to save taxpayer funds via the rescissions process.”

• FUNDING PROBLEMS: As Congress debates Planned Parenthood’s funding in President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” a new report from Live Action is making waves that showed that Planned Parenthood “prescribing hormones to minors with minimal oversight.” Live Action president, Lila Rose, noted that “this is not healthcare. It is child abuse, and it must be stopped.”

EXCLUSIVE: Reps. Van Duyne, Gill, and Houchin are optimistic on extending Trump tax cuts

by Matthew Foldi

THE LOWDOWN:

• A trio of House Republicans with front row seats to the ongoing battle over reconciliation are confident that the House will pass the “big, beautiful bill” favored by President Donald Trump — and that the committees they sit on will hit the requisite budget cuts needed in time.

• Reps. Beth Van Duyne (R., Texas), Erin Houchin (R., Ind.), and Brandon Gill (R., Texas) discussed the latest on extending the Trump tax cuts, reconciliation, tariffs, and more on the latest episode of the Republican Study Committee’s (RSC) Right to the Point podcast.

• Van Duyne noted that the “big, beautiful bill” will “include tax cuts, especially for our working American families, border security measures, and more.

• Specific programs that Houchin is excited about are the “199A small business deduction which is important, and the R and D tax credit is one that we hear about a lot.”

A trio of House Republicans with front row seats to the ongoing battle over reconciliation are confident that the House will pass the “big, beautiful bill” favored by President Donald Trump — and that the committees they sit on will hit the requisite budget cuts needed in time.

Reps. Beth Van Duyne (R., Texas), Erin Houchin (R., Ind.), and Brandon Gill (R., Texas) discussed the latest on extending the Trump tax cuts, reconciliation, tariffs, and more on the latest episode of the Republican Study Committee’s (RSC) Right to the Point podcast, obtained exclusively by the Washington Reporter.

Van Duyne noted that the “big, beautiful bill” will “include tax cuts, especially for our working American families, border security measures, measures looking at American energy independence, and measures that are looking at potential government spending cuts, because we all know how that is completely out of control.”

“Reconciliation does not normally make a whole lot of sense, but the chief purpose of the reconciliation process is to enhance Congress's ability to change current law in order to bring revenue and spending levels into conformity with the policies of the budget resolution, which is a very long-winded, very technical way of saying that it's really just a means of writing and passing the Republicans’ big, beautiful bill where we're going to have cut taxes, eliminate costly Biden-era rules and regulations and secure the border,” she explained.

For her part, Houchin was optimistic that the Energy and Commerce Committee will hit its target of $880 billion in savings next week. “There is a misconception that 100 percent of that has to come out of Medicaid, and that's just not true,” she said. “We're finding some savings in our energy sector. We're finding savings in other sections of code that aren't in the health care sector…Right now, we have illegal immigrants that are accepting benefits, that are on benefits, even though they're not supposed to be.”

Another priority that Van Duyne identified is how “we are right now trying to extend a lot of the provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” which was something that constituents of both Gill and Houchin want to see done quickly.

“What I hear from my district is that they want us to get this done quickly,” Gill said. “They want to see the tax certainty from these cuts flow through the economy quickly. But what they also want to see us do is back up the president.”

Houchin added that from her perspective, she has seen that “the business owners in our district do not want to see us have a tax increase at the end of the year.”

“So extending the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is going to be critical so we don't see a tax increase at the end of the year,” Houchin said. “One of the misconceptions is that in this bill is that we're giving tax breaks to billionaires to pay for Medicaid cuts, and none of that is true. In fact, the biggest beneficiaries of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act were in the middle class and the working class, and if we do not in extend the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, every single American will see a tax increase.”

EXCLUSIVE: Joe Biden's record drags down Democrat in new ad

by Matthew Foldi

THE LOWDOWN:

• After months out of the spotlight with very few questions about him, President Joe Biden resurfaced this week in multiple ways.

• RGA Right Direction PAC is tying Virginia Democrat gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger to Biden and his failed “Bidenomics” agenda in a new ad.

• The ad, exclusively obtained by the Washington Reporter, blames current inflationary woes on Biden and the Democrats who voted for the Build Back Better Act — and suggests that Republicans will continue to blame Democrats for that vote in both the House and in the Senate.

• The Republicans’ ad also attacks Spanberger for voting against the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which remains a top priority of the GOP-led trifecta in Washington, D.C.

After months out of the spotlight with very few questions about him, President Joe Biden resurfaced this week in multiple ways.

One such instance came in a new ad by the RGA Right Direction PAC tying Virginia Democrat gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger to Biden and his failed “Bidenomics” agenda.

The ad, exclusively obtained by the Washington Reporter, blames current inflationary woes on Biden and the Democrats who voted for the Build Back Better Act — and suggests that Republicans will continue to blame Democrats for that vote in both the House and in the Senate.

“Inflation during the Biden administration is still being felt across the country,” a narrator in the ad said. “Overall inflation is up nearly 18 percent.”

The Republicans’ ad also attacks Spanberger for voting against the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which remains a top priority of the GOP-led trifecta in Washington, D.C.

SCOOP: Inside Stephanie Bice and Markwayne Mullin's Oklahoma town hall

by Matthew Foldi

THE LOWDOWN:

• Rep. Stephanie Bice (R., Okla.) rolled out a special guest for the first time ever at her latest town hall: Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R., Okla.).

• The Bice-Mullin town hall was a live telephone town hall, which the pair did in order to reach tens of thousands of Oklahomans throughout the Fifth Congressional District.

• The Washington Reporter listened to the town hall led by Bice and Mullin, and found that many of the answers that the duo gave could help Republicans in districts across America as they deal with contentious questions from their constituents.

• Mullin also took the opportunity to clarify that “we're not going to touch any of the reimbursements.”

Rep. Stephanie Bice (R., Okla.) rolled out a special guest for the first time ever at her latest town hall: Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R., Okla.).

The bicameral duo tackled questions from Oklahomans on topics ranging from Medicare to reconciliation to impeaching President Donald Trump.

However, at times the questions grew heated in the latest instance of how far-left groups have been attempting to hijack Republican town halls across the country.

The Bice-Mullin town hall was a live telephone town hall, which the pair did in order to reach tens of thousands of Oklahomans throughout the Fifth Congressional District. It also prevented the need for taxpayer funded security as left-wing agitators block constituents from accessing their representatives.

Bice has now done 30 telephone town halls, averaging about one every month. While her guests are normally people like caseworkers from the Department of Veterans Affairs, her decision to invite Mullin helped broaden the perspective she could give to her constituents.

The Washington Reporter listened to the town hall led by Bice and Mullin, and found that many of the answers that the duo gave could help Republicans in districts across America as they deal with contentious questions from their constituents.

On the issues of the day, Bice let her constituents know the difference between the incoming reconciliation package and funding for Medicare and Social Security.

“Medicare and Social Security are not part of any reconciliation package,” she said. “Medicaid, which is the state portion that is taking care of individuals, typically children, pregnant women, and the elderly, we are looking at ways to revise the program.”

“But again I want to be clear actually in a reconciliation bill, you can't touch Social Security. It's not even allowed,” Bice continued. “And Medicare, the president has been very clear that he is not going to touch that program either.”

“And on the Medicaid front, I think it's important to realize that many states have been taking advantage of the program and the way they've been doing that is providing health coverage for illegals,” she added.

Mullin also took the opportunity to clarify that “we're not going to touch any of the reimbursements.”

However, he added, “that doesn't mean at some point that we won't take a hard look at the fraud that's inside Social Security,” he said. “That doesn't mean we're going to cut any benefits. We are not touching anybody's benefits when they're eligible for it.”

“We're not cutting the ones who are eligible, what they're eligible for in dollar amount. But there's a tremendous amount of waste in all these programs and actually throughout government,” Mullin said.

K-STREET, 10,000 FEET:

Conservative groups urge Congress to ensure that DOJ has access to full antitrust funds

by Matthew Foldi

THE LOWDOWN:

• A coalition of center-right groups is urging Congress, in a letter obtained first by the Washington Reporter, to ensure that the Department of Justice (DOJ) can access the funds it needs in order to carry out its antitrust activities.

• The group, led in part by the Foundation for American Innovation (FAI), also includes signatories from groups including the Article III Project, the Digital First Project, American Principles Project, Consumer Action for a Strong Economy, and more.

• “The Department of Justice is litigating major antitrust cases against Google and Apple, companies that have virtually unlimited war chests,” Evan Swarztrauber, a senior fellow at FAI, told the Reporter.

• The coalition wants the DOJ’s Antitrust Division to have full access to merger filing fees, which “enable vital antitrust and law enforcement efforts that have enjoyed widespread, bipartisan support across administrations,” as it wrote to House and Senate leadership of both parties, alongside top appropriators in both chambers.

A coalition of center-right groups is urging Congress, in a letter obtained first by the Washington Reporter, to ensure that the Department of Justice (DOJ) can access the funds it needs in order to carry out its antitrust activities.

The group, led in part by the Foundation for American Innovation (FAI), also includes signatories from groups including the Article III Project, the Digital First Project, American Principles Project, Consumer Action for a Strong Economy, and more.

“The Department of Justice is litigating major antitrust cases against Google and Apple, companies that have virtually unlimited war chests,” Evan Swarztrauber, a senior fellow at FAI, told the Reporter. “It is critical that the DOJ’s Antitrust Division has full access to merger filing fees to have a fighting chance against these and other monopolies.”

“Strong antitrust enforcement enjoys bipartisan support and, importantly, it is not a burden on taxpayers as filing fees fully cover the cost of the agency's law enforcement. Congress must avoid tying the agency's hands,” Swarztrauber said.

The coalition wants the DOJ’s Antitrust Division to have full access to merger filing fees, which “enable vital antitrust and law enforcement efforts that have enjoyed widespread, bipartisan support across administrations,” as it wrote to House and Senate leadership of both parties, alongside top appropriators in both chambers.

“While Congressional appropriators are right to seek cost savings and efficiencies in government, the DoJ Antitrust Division is a lean and cost-effective operation that punches miles above its weight,” the coalition noted. “Despite taking on deep-pocketed monopolies with virtually unlimited resources, the Department has a track record of success in reducing prices, increasing consumer choice, and safeguarding competition.”

As Congress seeks to cut costs across the government, the group wants to ensure that the Antitrust Division isn’t slashed.

OPINIONATED

Op-Ed: Eric Wilson: Republicans’ small dollar woes begin now

by Eric Wilson

Let’s time-travel to September 2026, just weeks before the midterm elections: Campaign fundraising reports just published and major news outlets from Politico to The Washington Post issue dire warnings about Republicans being swamped by the liberal fundraising machine and barrelling towards defeat in November.

It’s not difficult to imagine –– it’s the same story every cycle.

The outcomes vary but Democrats reliably stand in a stronger –– sometimes overwhelming –– financial position than Republican candidates deep into the campaign season. This year, though, the alarm bells are ringing already if you know how to hear them.

In this cycle’s first quarterly fundraising reports, House Republicans are outpacing their Democrat counterparts. But underneath the hood, you’ll find that an average of 18 percent of Democrats’ total receipts came from “unitemized” individual donors, the best proxy for grassroots fundraising –– Republicans have just half that. In the Senate, just 5 percent of Republicans’ average quarterly fundraising came from small dollar donors compared to 44 percent for Democrats.

That is the real dire warning. And unless Republicans act now to address the cultural roots of their fundraising disadvantage, we will again find ourselves on defense down the homestretch, overly reliant on major donors to bail out our candidates and level the playing field.

Closing the fundraising gap requires addressing why it exists in the first place. Democrats had a significant multi-cycle headstart on prioritizing online fundraising and Republicans have been stuck playing catch-up; and now, the Republican Party’s coalition has become more working class, while Democrats are buoyed by wealthier, more educated supporters.

Democrat donors are also wired differently. The Center for Campaign Innovation’s 2024 Post-Election Survey found that Democrat donors were 12 percent more likely to donate to federal candidates, and more than twice as likely to prioritize a candidate with a good chance of winning. Put differently, Democrat donors give more and are making a bigger impact than their Republican counterparts.