Trump to Meet Republicans to Discuss Clarity Act Ethics Provisions

President Donald Trump is set to meet with Republican lawmakers to discuss ethics provisions, the biggest obstacle to passing the Clarity Act, a bill to regulate the cryptocurrency market.

Kristin Smith, president of the Solana Policy Institute, told The Block that a meeting is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Eastern on July 15 with Trump, Republican Senators Bernie Moreno and Cynthia Lummis, White House senior crypto adviser Patrick Witt and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.

The meeting is intended to present several ideas on the ethics issue and secure Trump's approval, Smith told The Block, calling it a "very positive signal." She added that the discussion would be "critical" to the bill's passage.

The Clarity Act would be the first federal legislation to comprehensively regulate digital assets. The Senate is aiming for a floor vote before its August recess, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune has said he wants to bring the bill up before then.

The main sticking point is the ethics provision. Lawmakers from both parties have spent months negotiating whether to include restrictions on federal officials, including the president, vice president and members of Congress, from profiting from digital assets while in office. The debate intensified last month after Trump's financial disclosure showed crypto-related income worth hundreds of millions of dollars tied to his family business, World Liberty Financial.

Democrats say they cannot support the bill without an ethics provision. Senators Ruben Gallego and Angela Alsobrooks voted for the measure in the Senate Banking Committee, but said the ethics issue must be resolved before they would support a full Senate vote. Democratic Senators Chris Van Hollen, Chris Murphy and Jeff Merkley also said at a July 15 press conference that they oppose advancing the bill without such language.

Republicans have continued negotiations while rejecting some Democratic proposals. Lummis has said she opposes allowing state attorneys general to sue public officials, though she is considering the use of blind trusts. She added that if Congress and the White House can agree on language both sides can accept, the result would be balanced.

Smith said she had long believed the bill had little chance of passing, but now sees a viable path. "At this moment, I may be more optimistic than anyone else," she said.