Tom Emmer, the Minnesota Representative, once more lashed out at SEC chairman Gary Gensler and the Biden administration during a Congress session.
The senator did so as his appropriation amendment was passed by the US House, which is aimed at controlling the enforcement abuse of the SEC directed towards the digital asset industry.
The criticism
Emmer criticized the SEC boss the same day that the latter attended the DC Fintech Week Conference. Gensler also told CNBC that the FTX brand could be revived.
He stated that whoever managed to secure the remains of the now-defunct crypto exchange could revive it, as long as they do so within the law.
Emmer presented critical comments worth 700 words at the Capitol that were against the SEC and Gensler.
He said that the administration also uses enforcement for regulation purposes and this is exactly what Gensler and the SEC are doing.
Emmer added that this was not just the case with the financial services industry and the capital markets, but was also evident in the case of the digital assets community.
The amendment
Emmer stated that Gensler’s regulatory abuse was crushing capital formation and innovation in America and he put forth an amendment to put an end to it.
According to Emmer, the amendment would prohibit the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from using funds for regulating the digital assets industry by enforcement.
This would be applicable until legislation is enacted by Congress that grants the SEC the authority to regulate this asset class.
The Minnesota Representative said that Gensler had directed the SEC to take numerous enforcement actions against the digital assets industry.
However, he pointed out that he had not introduced a single regulation or rule that the industry was required to follow.
He stated that Gensler had not provided the market with a clear idea of which digital assets are categorized as securities.
More issues
According to Emmer, Congress has not given jurisdiction over digital assets to the SEC, yet the regulatory body has tried to expand its authority to exploit and destroy the digital assets industry through the enforcement approach.
He said that clear guidance is required desperately, but Gensler has wasted taxpayer money by going after celebrities, such as Kim Kardashian.
Meanwhile, people like Sam Bankman-Fried had been able to operate a Ponzi scheme right under the nose of the SEC boss.
According to Emmer, the amendment was a message to every regulatory body part of the federal government that they would be held accountable by Congress.
Emmer called Gensler incompetent and ineffective and said that the amendment would keep him in check, while Congress gives the digital industry a chance to grow and expand in the country.
While Emmer was criticizing Gensler, the latter was attending a financial industry conference.
He acknowledged that Tom Farley, the former president of the New York Stock Exchange, could bring FTX back to life.
Bullish, his crypto exchange, is one of the top three bidders for the remaining assets of FTX in a bankruptcy auction.