CLARITY Act Stalls Over Ethics Provisions, Democrats Demand Stronger Conflict-of-Interest Language

The passage of the CLARITY Act has been met with skepticism by crypto content creator Austin Hilton. He addressed the XRP community in a recent video, expressing visible frustration over the bill's trajectory, stating that 'Looks like it's just dying on a vine.'

The vote requires 60 votes to advance, and all 53 Senate Republicans are committed to yes votes. However, seven Democrats must cross the aisle, but so far, those votes are not there.

The central sticking point is the ethics provision. Democrats want strong conflict-of-interest language covering President Trump and his family, citing Trump's more than $1 billion in crypto earnings in 2025 tied to ventures like the TRUMP memecoin and World Liberty Financial. Republican negotiators have released multiple revised versions of the ethics text, but Democrats continue to call it insufficient.

Senator Cynthia Lummis publicly wrote that 'if this bill fails, it won't be because of ethics.' She argued that Democrats are demanding changes that 'would give future regulators the ability to kill the crypto industry' and called for further Democratic compromise. Senator Mike Brown was more blunt, stating, 'it does not look good right now.'