The article argues that recent executive overreach and politicization have severely undermined established norms of U.S. civil-military relations. To restore professional standards, the incoming Congress must actively exercise its oversight powers, moving beyond mere criticism to demanding transparency in defense policy and personnel decisions. Key reforms include enforcing meritocratic promotion processes, requiring documented justification for senior officer removals, and preventing the partisan use of the military. These actions are crucial for bolstering public trust and ensuring the military remains a nonpartisan instrument of civilian control.
The Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act Is Sound Policy
English Summary
CATO argues that the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (Section 604 of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act) is sound policy because it correctly distinguishes software developers from money transmitters, preventing those who write blockchain code but never hold user assets from being regulated as financial institutions. The article contends that opponents' law-enforcement concerns are misplaced, since the provision preserves criminal liability for knowingly handling illicit funds and is consistent with the DOJ's own position that writing code without criminal intent is not a crime. CATO further warns that failing to pass the provision would drive developers offshore—noting the U.S. share of open-source blockchain developers has already dropped from 25% to 18%—reducing law enforcement visibility while extending a Bank Secrecy Act surveillance regime that already costs $59 billion annually yet yields minimal investigative leads.
中文摘要
CATO 認為《區塊鏈監管確定性法案》（《數位資產市場透明度法案》第604條）是合理的政策，因為該法案正確區分了軟體開發者與資金傳輸業者，使撰寫區塊鏈程式碼但從未持有用戶資產的開發者免於被視為金融機構而受到監管。文章主張反對者的執法疑慮並不成立，因為該條款保留了對故意處理非法資金者的刑事責任，且與美國司法部的立場一致——即在無犯罪意圖的情況下撰寫程式碼並不構成犯罪。CATO 進一步警告，若未能通過該條款，將迫使開發者外移至海外——指出美國在開源區塊鏈開發者中的佔比已從25%下降至18%——這不僅會降低執法機構的可見度，還會延續每年耗資590億美元卻僅產生極少調查線索的《銀行保密法》監控體制。
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