The White House still has an appetite for bitcoin, but the path to actual government purchases runs into Congress. Witt, who stepped down as executive director of the White House crypto council in October for the private sector, said on the What Bitcoin Did podcast that the president is interested in the idea. He added that there has been a lot of discussion about how it might be done.
A March 2025 executive order created the reserve using bitcoin the government had already seized. It told the Treasury and Commerce departments to find acquisition strategies that are budget neutral. Since then, no strategy has been made public, and no open-market purchase has been announced.
Congress holds the spending power
Witt framed the main problem as legal, not political. He said outright open-market purchases are of questionable legality because Congress controls federal spending. Lawmakers have already acted. According to Witt, concern about purchases led Congress to add a rider to the NDAA that blocks the move. He said the goal is to reach a place where the authority is clearly granted.
Making the reserve permanent would be harder. Witt called a standalone bill incredibly difficult in a divided Congress. He also said he would struggle to imagine Democrats passing such a measure. Without legislation, the reserve rests on executive orders that a future president could reverse. Repealing a predecessor’s orders is, he warned, one of the first things they do.
Political map shifts after midterms
The interview came days after the Nov. 3 midterms, where Democrats won both chambers. Galaxy Research flagged new risks for the industry, and Bitcoin.com News reported that Elizabeth Warren, a tough crypto critic, is set to chair the Senate Banking Committee. The White House has been reviewing SEC crypto rules after the vote, while the CLARITY Act remains stalled in the Senate. Not everyone has given up. Strategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor linked wins from both parties to bitcoin reserves after the election, arguing support for sovereign bitcoin holdings goes beyond party lines.
Traders watch Washington for signs
Bitcoin has had a rough stretch. It traded near $73,600 on Nov. 11 after falling to $72,787 on a hotter-than-expected U.S. CPI print. That pushed rate markets toward pricing in a December Fed hike. Any sign that Washington could become a buyer would be a major signal. Traders are also watching for Treasury guidance on budget-neutral acquisition, the fate of the NDAA rider in the next defense bill, and whether a lame-duck Congress takes up digital asset legislation before Democrats take control in January. Interesting times ahead, to say the least.
