Elizabeth Warren Sounds Alarm Over White House Crypto Czar David Sacks’ Ethical Tenure

Washington's crypto watchdog just got watch-dogged—Senator Warren fires first shot at administration's digital asset lead.

ETHICS UNDER SCRUTINY

Sacks' appointment raises eyebrows as Warren questions potential conflicts in America's top crypto role. The Massachusetts senator demands transparency—citing revolving door concerns between regulatory power and private sector ties.

POLITICAL PRESSURE MOUNTS

The White House faces fresh headaches as regulatory clarity battles perception issues. Sacks' background in crypto ventures puts him squarely in Warren's crosshairs—because nothing says 'public trust' like a former VC regulating his old playground.

REGULATORY SHOWDOWN LOOMS

Warren's move signals coming fights over digital asset governance. The administration's crypto strategy now faces dual threats—market volatility and political skepticism. Because when traditional finance fails, why not trust the guy who probably holds a bag of memecoins?

Conflict-of-interest worries

Sacks, a venture capitalist and general partner at Craft Ventures, has played a high-profile role in shaping TRUMP administration policy on digital assets and artificial intelligence.

Lawmakers argued that his private financial ties to Silicon Valley raise serious ethical questions if he is no longer within the bounds of SGE status.

According to the letter:

“When issuing your ethics waiver, the White House noted that the careful balance in conflict-of-interest rules for SGEs was reached with the understanding that they WOULD only serve the public ‘on a temporary basis. For you in particular, compliance with the SGE time limit is critical, given the scale of your conflicts of interest.”

The group noted that Sacks’ private salary from Craft Ventures is permissible only under the temporary provisions of his appointment. If he has worked past the legal limit, the lawmakers warned, his continued dual roles could represent a breach of ethics.

Counting the days

According to the letter, Sacks was appointed in December 2024 and began working around Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, 2025. By the lawmakers’ calculation, he reached the 130-day threshold in late May if counting every calendar day, or late July if counting business days.

As of Sept. 17, they said, he had served for 167 days.

Alongside Warren, the letter was signed by Sens. Chris Van Hollen, Richard Blumenthal and Jeffrey Merkley, as well as Reps. Melanie Stansbury, Betty McCollum, Rashida Tlaib and Bernie Sanders.

The lawmakers requested a full accounting of Sacks’ service record and a clarification of his employment status. The White House and Sacks have not publicly responded to the inquiry.