Orange Pill App’s Tweet Sparks Bitcoin Education Initiative in U.S. Congress
In a notable move for Bitcoin advocacy, a viral tweet from the Orange Pill App has catalysed a campaign to educate members of the U.S. Congress about Bitcoin. The initiative involved distributing copies of The Bitcoin Standard, a prominent book on Bitcoin by author Saifedean Ammous, to congressional offices. The project aimed to increase awareness of Bitcoin’s potential impact and educate lawmakers about the digital currency.
The initiative began with a tweet from the Orange Pill App, a platform dedicated to connecting Bitcoiners. In the tweet, the Orange Pill App offered to purchase and send 535 copies of The Bitcoin Standard to the U.S. Congress if Saifedean Ammous agreed to join the app. Ammous, a renowned figure in the Bitcoin community, accepted the challenge, prompting the Orange Pill App to follow through on its promise.
Matteo Pellegrini, Founder & CEO of the Orange Pill App, explained in an interview with us that the goal was to leverage Ammous' influence to draw attention to the app while simultaneously spreading the core principles of Bitcoin to key policymakers. “The goal of that tweet was to get Saifedean on the app so that we would get a famous Bitcoiner on the app," Pellegrini said. "And then we had to, you know, then I realized, oh my God, now I have to buy all these books, which is not easy to buy 500 copies of a book, I found out.”
Fundraising and Execution
To fund the ambitious project, the team turned to Geyser Fund, a crowdfunding platform that allows users to raise funds in Bitcoin. Pellegrini cited his familiarity with the founders of Geyser Fund and the platform's specific focus on Bitcoin-based projects as the reasons for choosing this method. The campaign successfully raised approximately $9,000, equating to 25 million satoshis (the smallest unit of Bitcoin), within a few months. With the necessary funds secured, the team coordinated logistics to deliver the books. They shipped the books to Washington, D.C., where they were stored for some time before being distributed. Brian DeMint who is head of marketing for the Orange Pill App and Dennis Porter from the Satoshi Action Fund, personally delivered the books to congressional offices.
“Dennis Porter organized the day…we divided the team…we give out 535 books in one day to every single office in Congress,” Pellegrini noted. The distribution aimed to provide every member of Congress with a copy of The Bitcoin Standard, hoping to plant the seeds of understanding about Bitcoin's role in the future of finance.
One notable outcome of this initiative was Congressman Thomas Massie reading the book, which reportedly influenced his perspective on financial systems and led him to propose a controversial idea to abolish the Federal Reserve. While Pellegrini acknowledges that such a proposal is not realistic, he views the campaign as a symbolic move to start conversations and provoke thought among lawmakers. “It’s not about being realistic, it’s about sending a message,” he stated.
Future Plans and Developments
The Orange Pill App, which focuses on networking, events, and merchant services within the Bitcoin community, has plans to expand its functionalities. Depending on the political landscape, particularly with the outcome of the next U.S. presidential election, the app may introduce a Bitcoin wallet feature, should the regulatory environment become more favourable.
For now, the Orange Pill App continues to foster connections within the Bitcoin community, with its membership numbers publicly displayed on its website. As of the latest count, the app has over 11,800 users.
