The Clarity Act will need to be sold to a large number of Democrats in the coming days, if it’s going to advance from the Senate before Congress’ summer break and the focus on this fall’s midterm elections. Though a new and potentially final draft is set to emerge as soon as Tuesday, it’s still absent a resolution on what may be the last and most important sticking point: a section that bans senior government officials — including the president — from personally engaging in the crypto industry.
That ethics provision remains at the forefront of the debate, and many Democrats have said they can’t vote for a Clarity Act that doesn’t have it. Those vows also came from the Democrats who have been at the negotiating table and voted yes on the bill when it was approved by the Senate Banking Committee.
“If this system does not stop Trump’s corruption of the entire industry, this bill is worthless,” said Murphy, who hasn’t been among Democrats at the negotiating table with Republicans. “If it protects Trump’s dominance over an industry that he will have more control to regulate, in fact, the bill is, in and of itself, a fundamental corruption if it gives Trump’s corruption the protection of law.”