Former US President Donald Trump on Wednesday night (local time) pledged to block the creation of a federal digital currency, terming it a “dangerous threat to freedom,” The Hill reported. While addressing a rally in New Hampshire’s Portsmouth, Trump said, “Tonight, I am also making another promise to protect Americans from government tyranny.” He said, “As your president, I will never allow the creation of a central bank digital currency.” He further said, “Such a currency would give a federal government, our federal government, the absolute control over your money.” Trump stated, “They could take your money. You wouldn’t even know it was gone. This would be a dangerous threat to freedom.”

A central bank digital currency (CBDC) is a digital version of a currency issued by a central bank. The decision will entail the Federal Reserve of the US issuing a digital dollar that could be used in the same way as a regular dollar, The Hill reported.

Earlier this week, Trump registered a landslide victory and is expected to win 20 of Iowa’s 40 delegates. While, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley are estimated to get eight and seven delegates respectively, CNN reported.

Trump’s victory in his first election since his unusual exit in 2020 has also laid to rest any lingering questions about his hold over the GOP and the potency of his right-wing message.

Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden called for more talks and research into a CBDC system in a September 2022 executive order. In March, US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that the Fed and a Treasury-led interagency working group had not yet made “any real decisions” on the issue.

Previously, Powell stressed that the central bank would not move forward with a digital dollar without getting approval from Congress. Despite this, the prospect of a federal digital currency has been opposed by Republican lawmakers, according to the report.

Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis signed a bill prohibiting the use of CBDCs in Florida in May. He urged the Florida lawmakers to pass the legislation in March. He stressed that CBDCs are part of US effort to push “woke ideology” and could be used by the federal government to spy on Americans and control their behaviour, The Hill reported.

At the time, Ron DeSantis said, “What are they going to want to do here? If you go and buy too much gasoline, they won’t allow you to use this to make a transaction? Who knows? Maybe they won’t let you purchase a firearm.”