CLARITY Act Vote in Jeopardy as Senate Democrats Hold Up Bill

Senate Democrats are blocking a key procedural vote on the CLARITY Act, raising concerns that the crypto market-structure bill may not pass before lawmakers leave for recess on August 7.

The bill's prospects have been complicated by three sticking points: ethics enforcement, illicit finance rules, and how it handles stablecoin yield. Democrats want stronger provisions to prevent corruption among senior federal officials and to stop decentralized protocols from slipping through existing regulations.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has pushed back on parts of the bill that he says could let activity slip through decentralized protocols outside normal Bank Secrecy Act expectations, but his arguments have not been enough to win over Democratic vote-counters. The White House is reviewing a bipartisan fix from Sens. Thom Tillis and Ruben Gallego line by line.