Cryptocurrency Promotion: Does Biden’s Unwitting Gesture Boost Bitcoin?

• US President Joe Biden, in a new promotional video, unknowingly featured a Bitcoin-associated meme by sporting ‘laser eyes’ on a coffee mug.
• Bitcoin and crypto enthusiasts quickly recognized this reference, sparking speculation and amusement over the potential inadvertent endorsement of Bitcoin.

In a surprising twist of events, US President Joe Biden found himself in the midst of a Bitcoin-related storm, thanks to a promotional video for his re-election campaign. The video, shared on August 3, showed Biden enjoying a “cup of Joe,” but it was the coffee mug that stole the show.

Joe Biden is a #Bitcoin maxi now. #lasereyes and everything. Haters in disbelief. Next thing he could instructs the Fed to buy some Bitcoin to back the Dollar. Welcome Mr. President! Sorry about the “roast”. 😆 https://t.co/HEDlrnxeew

— Gabor Gurbacs (@gaborgurbacs) August 3, 2023

Unintentional Nod to the Bitcoin Community

The mug sported an image of Biden with glowing red ‘laser eyes’, a symbol associated with Bitcoin proponents. ‘Laser eyes’ emerged as a social media meme among the crypto community as part of a campaign aiming to drive Bitcoin’s price to $100,000 by the end of 2021. This trend was popularized by celebrities like NFL star Tom Brady, Paris Hilton, and Elon Musk, all seen with laser-eyed profile pictures as a testament to their bullish stance on Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general.

Biden’s coffee mug ignited a wave of responses from the crypto community, mixing delight and amusement. One Twitter user declared,

“Joe Biden is a Bitcoin maxi now. Laser eyes and everything. Haters in disbelief.” Another observer suggested that the President had given the “biggest endorsement of Bitcoin history,”

while some speculated that he was attempting to curry favor with Bitcoin enthusiasts.

However, the connections between the Biden administration and the crypto world have been less than amicable, given the government’s contentious tax proposals for digital asset miners and what some see as other ‘anti-crypto’ policies. As such, it’s unlikely the coffee mug’s design was intentionally referencing Bitcoin.

Instead, the ‘laser-eyed’ image appears to relate to Biden’s online alter-ego, ‘Dark Brandon’. This meme portrays Biden in a darker, edgier light, often leveraged by his supporters to celebrate his policy victories. Nonetheless, the President’s accidental dip into Bitcoin symbology provides a fascinating insight into the crypto culture’s mainstream permeation. Whether or not this incident brings a change in the administration’s stance on cryptocurrencies remains to be seen.