Senate Republicans planned to release the updated CLARITY Act text on July 17, immediately after a White House meeting with President Donald Trump, even as Senate Democrats warned they will not support the draft.
Key Takeaways
Sen. Bernie Moreno said the CLARITY Act text would drop right after the July 17 meeting with Trump.Sen. Ruben Gallego called the GOP’s ethics language ‘very weak’ as Democrats withhold crucial votes.The bill needs 60 Senate votes, including at least 7 Democrats, before the Aug. 8 recess deadline.Republican senators were expected to unveil the long-delayed Senate text following Thursday afternoon’s meeting with the president. The release would cap nearly a year of negotiations, after sources close to the matter said earlier this month that a new version could surface within days. Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) confirmed the timing to reporters, adding:
“We’ll do that right after the meeting. You guys have a lot of reading to do.”
Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), a lead Democratic negotiator, described the Republican language as “very weak,” arguing it provides excessive latitude and insufficient consumer protections. Gallego stated:
“They’re taking a version of the text to the president with their ethics provisions, not with anything that we agree to as Democrats.”
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) reinforced the point, noting: “The only way to get this done is a bipartisan pathway.”
The Math to 60 VotesThe text release now becomes the trigger for everything else. Republicans want a floor vote before the recess, and the House Financial Services Committee’s Digital Assets Subcommittee held a field hearing on July 17, marking one year since the House first passed the measure. If the Senate amends and passes the bill, the House must still align on the final version before it can reach the president’s desk.
