US President Donald Trump has reportedly been manipulated by a lobbyist associated with Ripple Labs into promoting the XRP cryptocurrency as part of a national crypto reserve. A Politico report from May 8 reveals that an employee of pro-Trump lobbyist Brian Ballard supplied Trump with a suggested social media post, which included a mention of XRP among other cryptocurrencies. After posting this on March 2, Trump learned about Ballard's connection to Ripple, leading to his anger as he felt misled. Trump had prior connections to Ripple, with significant political donations made by the company to his campaign. Following this incident, Trump proceeded with plans for a 'Digital Asset Stockpile' just days later. Despite the news, the price of XRP remained relatively unaffected, increasing only slightly at the time of publication.

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