Senator Gallego Cautions Against Hasty CLARITY Act Vote
Senator Gallego expressed concern that the White House hasn't delivered detailed feedback on bipartisan ethics provisions ahead of the scheduled September vote.
Senator Ruben Gallego, a Democrat, has cautioned that forcing the CLARITY Act through a Senate vote prematurely, without first resolving key disagreements regarding ethics provisions and stablecoin yield regulations, risks derailing crypto market structure legislation in the United States.
During his appearance at the SALT Wyoming Blockchain Symposium on Wednesday, Gallego emphasized that the cryptocurrency sector should advocate for continued negotiations between Senate Democrats and Republicans rather than demanding an immediate floor vote. According to Gallego, legislators still need to work through the bill's Agriculture Committee section, put together the comprehensive package, and figure out the strategy for transmitting it to the House of Representatives.
The senator's cautionary remarks add complexity to the Trump administration's efforts to achieve rapid passage by indicating that a procedural vote might occur before negotiators successfully build the bipartisan support coalition necessary to meet the Senate's required 60-vote threshold.
Don't go for a fast vote. A fast vote gets you a fast result, but I'm not sure it's the result you want.
Gallego further noted that Congress had numerous steps remaining in the process and that "any premature movement is going to set it back further."
Gallego says White House has not answered ethics proposal
According to Gallego, he and his Republican colleague Senator Thom Tillis presented compromise ethics language to the White House prior to the congressional recess but have yet to receive a detailed, point-by-point response. The senator stressed that establishing sufficiently robust ethics restrictions would be essential for securing Democratic backing and moving the legislation forward.
We've been sending offers over and over again to the White House, and they've been coming back either blank, or they've come back even slightly further back, or we've heard nothing.
Cointelegraph reached out to the White House for comment but did not receive a response before publication.
These comments come amid intensifying pressure from the administration. During a White House appearance with cryptocurrency industry executives on Wednesday, Trump called on Congress to approve a "fair version" of the CLARITY Act.
Leadership in the Senate has postponed action on the bill until September. Senate Majority Leader John Thune confirmed to Cointelegraph on Aug. 7 that the chamber was "punting" the vote and indicated that CLARITY would be positioned "first thing" on the agenda when lawmakers reconvene following the recess.
Patrick Witt, the White House crypto adviser, had previously indicated that the administration would engage in negotiations with Democrats leading up to the September vote but emphasized they "can't afford to wait forever."