Robert
F.
Kennedy
Jr.,
the
U.S.
presidential
candidate,
spoke
at
a
press
conference
Thursday
at
Consensus
2024
in
Austin,
Texas.
Here
are
some
of
his
comments:
Donald
Trump’s
guilty
verdict
“I’m
going
to
talk
about
issues
of
broader
concern.
I
want
to
focus
on
the
economic
issues
and
the
health
issues.
That’s
what
my
campaign
is
about.
I’m
not
going
to
get
dragged
into
the
dirt
pile.
I
don’t
have
any
thoughts.
I’ve
been
very
disciplined
in
not
talking
about
lawsuits
against
[Joe]
Biden
or
Trump.”
Thoughts
on
Trump’s
new
pro-crypto
stance
“I’m
happy
about
that.
I
think
it’s
a
good
thing
for
our
country.
Commitment
to
crypto
is
a
commitment
to
freedom
and
transparency.
I’m
not
going
to
question
if
it
was
a
political
decision.
I’m
happy
he
did
it,
and
I
hope
President
Biden
does,
too.”
Biggest
issues
facing
crypto
regulation
in
the
U.S.
“I
think
transactional
freedom
is
one.
We
need
sovereignty
over
our
own
wallets,
transactional
freedom
and
a
currency
that
is
transparent.
We
need
to
make
sure
America
remains
the
hub
of
blockchain
technology.
I’m
going
to
make
sure
cryptocurrency
is
regulated
in
a
way
that
protects
the
consumer
from
deceptive
schemes.
I
purchased
21
bitcoins
since
I
started
this
campaign.
I
also
bought
three
coins
for
each
of
my
kids.”
What
does
the
future
hold
for
crypto
fans?
“My
objective
if
elected
president
is
that
crypto
is
a
transactional
currency.
That
people
can
have
transactional
freedom.
That
people
have
a
choice
as
to
whether
they
can
buy
it.
I
think
it
should
be
treated
as
a
currency;
we
shouldn’t
be
taxing
it
as
capital
gains.
I
think
there
are
issues
in
how
we
do
that.
I
believe
that
it
should
be
a
currency
used
to
purchase
things
like
apples,
lunches
and
coffee
and
that
people
can
do
that.”
What
inspired
him
to
run
for
president
“I
toyed
with
getting
into
politics
when
I
was
younger.
For
two
decades
I
took
that
off
the
plate.
I
saw
what
happened
during
Covid
and
when
the
government
shut
down
the
economy.
I
thought
it
was
wrong.
The
government
shut
down
every
church,
attacked
the
5th
amendment,
shut
down
business
without
due
process
…
they
shut
down
jury
trials,
they
violated
prohibitions
and
I
saw
this
attack
on
the
constitution
and
censorship,
not
just
to
me
but
so
many
people
who
were
trying
to
talk.
I
saw
that
and
it
seemed
so
unethical
to
my
country.
All
these
traditional
values
for
my
party
and
my
country
were
disappearing,
and
I
felt
I
could
play
a
unique
role
in
showing
people
what
America’s
supposed
to
look
like.”
