Cawthorn makes dubious claim as he denies trading crypto with insider knowledge

Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) called allegations that he engaged in an insider trading scheme involving a meme coin mocking President Joe Biden “ridiculous” in a video statement Wednesday afternoon.

The leader of the “Let’s Go Brandon” coin, James Koutoulas, revealed in an Instagram post on Friday that Cawthorn traded the cryptocurrency three weeks before NASCAR driver Brandon Brown announced the coin would sponsor his 2022 season, causing its value to skyrocket by 75%. On Dec. 29, one day before Brown’s announcement, Cawthorn posted on Instagram in response to a picture of him posing with Koutoulas at a party: “LGB legends … Tomorrow we go to the moon!”