Eric Trump's Mining Company Hasn't Won A Block In Months | Ep 19⚖️

Episode 19 of Trust Issues — Alex and Emily on the Tuesday before Consensus Miami. The Bitcoin Vegas conference is happening in parallel, Forbes just dropped a hit piece on Eric Trump's American Bitcoin venture, and the conversation rolls straight into the Ben McKenzie tour, the politics of DeFi United, and what an individual is actually supposed to do about any of it.Alex walks through American Bitcoin via mempool.space — Eric Trump's mining company hasn't won a meaningful block in months, American energy is too expensive, and aluminum smelters keep getting bought up by chip manufacturers for AI. Emily traces the actual money: where Silicon Valley LP capital ended up, how it dumped into the pockets of "too stupid" founders, and how that cycle just amplified.DeFi United update: 137,600+ ETH and ~$315M pledged. KelpDAO is fully covered assuming the pending Arbitrum DAO vote on 30,765 frozen ETH passes — and Emily flags that the people loudest about "no handouts" are the same people quietly pooling to bail out their friends. The whole thing is a real-time argument for why DeFi protocol design needs better safety mechanisms baked in.Then the Ben McKenzie deep dive — "Everyone Is Lying to You for Money," the OC actor with the economics degree on a national talk-show tour. Verdict: the mission deserves to be waged, but he's not the dog to bark up that tree. The fight is worth fighting; the messenger is wrong. Emily's pivot: the only individual-level answer is making yourself harder to lie to. Define your terms (what is a Ponzi scheme, actually?). Hunt down primary sources. Be honest about what you don't know — that's the most disarming thing in any conversation.Plus: a real-estate RWA cautionary tale (Emily's friend tokenized a famous museum on a major platform with zero due diligence, sold the token, and the platform did nothing about it), the Balenciaga social-experiment rant, and the bumper-sticker thesis — make yourself harder to lie to. Will hosts RUMS 499 with Alex on Wednesday morning. No TI next week — back for episode 20 from the road.Support the show— Want to hang out with us after the show, get live answers to your questions, or join future giveaways? Join our free community where the show lives 24/7: community.rumshq.com—☕ THE RISE UP MORNING SHOW☀️LIVE Monday - Thursday @ 7a centralHelpful web3 news, commentary, & answers to your crypto questions.🍻RISE UP AFTER DARK🌗 LIVE Wednesdays @ 7p centralDYOR and BYOB for casual Q&A, fun with expert guests, and altcoin research.📈RISE UP MARKET WATCH🤑LIVE Mondays @ 7p centralTechnical analysis, real macro insight, and practical takeaways to help you invest smarter in every market.⚖️ TRUST ISSUES 🧐 LIVE Tuesdays @ 6:30p centralBreaking down U.S. crypto policy, regulation, and legislation—what they mean for the industry and what comes next.—WANT MORE?👉Connect w/us on your favorite social: https://rumshq.com👉Become a guest or sponsor: [email protected]👉Join our free community: https://community.rumshq.comFOLLOW OUR HOSTS:☮️ Evan Mann: https://beacons.ai/conversationswithevan🤬 Alex Popovic: https://alexpopovic.info🐬 Will Watson: https://c...