[Former White House Advisor: Trump Still Interested in Buying Bitcoin, But Faces Legal Obstacles] According to Bitcoin.com News, former White House crypto advisor Patrick Witt stated that US President Trump still intends to purchase Bitcoin for the US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, but open market purchases face serious legal issues. Witt stated on the What Bitcoin Did podcast that the president is interested in this, and there has been much discussion about it. An executive order in March 2025 established this reserve, pooling Bitcoin that the government has seized, and required the Treasury and Commerce Departments to find “budget-neutral” acquisition strategies; Currently, no such strategy has been publicly announced, nor have any open market purchases been announced. Witt stated that direct open market purchases are “legal in question” because Congress controls federal spending. He also stated that concerns about the purchases “prompted Congress to include a clause in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that prohibits such purchases.” He added that efforts are underway to obtain permission and authorization for it. Witt pointed out that making the reserve permanent is even more difficult; passing a separate bill in a divided Congress would be extremely difficult, and without legislation, the reserve would rely on executive orders, which could be revoked by a future president.