United States Senator Ted Cruz wants to make the American state of Texas an oasis for Bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrencies. Speaking at the Texas Blockchain Summit 2022 in late November, the politician empathized how the crypto industry can be strategic for the U.S. energy supply and technological development. 

Cruz argued that Bitcoin mining could be used to monetize energy created from oil and gas extraction, rather than burning it. In addition, he emphasized how mining activity can be used as an energy storage and supply alternative: "The beauty of it [Bitcoin mining] is when you've got substantial investment, as we do in Texas and Bitcoin mining, when you have an extreme weather event, either extreme heat, which is frequent in the state of Texas or extreme cold, which sometimes happens here, Bitcoin mining can be shut off in a fraction of a second. Making that electricity immediately available to the grid to heat or cool people's homes, to keep businesses running. That is an enormous reservoir of excess capacity that, I think, is very beneficial."