Democratic Senator Gallego Says Rushing Crypto CLARITY Act Vote Could Backfire

Senator Ruben Gallego, an Arizona Democrat, warned that rushing a vote on the CLARITY Act, a market structure bill for digital assets, could set the legislation back.

Gallego made the remarks at the SALT Wyoming Blockchain Symposium in Wyoming on August 20, Cointelegraph reported. "A quick vote gets you a quick result, but I don't know if that's the result you want," he said. "Moving too fast is going to push this bill further back."

He said he is worried a procedural vote could happen before the Senate builds the bipartisan coalition needed to clear the 60-vote threshold. Several steps still remain, including addressing provisions under the Agriculture Committee's jurisdiction, assembling the broader legislative package and deciding how to send the measure to the House. He also urged the crypto industry to push for continued negotiations between Democrats and Republicans rather than an immediate vote.

Gallego also criticized the White House for a lack of communication. He said he and Republican Senator Thom Tillis submitted a compromise proposal on ethics provisions before Congress recessed, but received no concrete response. "We kept sending proposals to the White House, and what came back was either empty responses, language that had moved backward, or no response at all," Gallego said. Cointelegraph said it requested comment from the White House but did not receive a response before publication.

President Donald Trump, meanwhile, met with crypto industry executives at the White House the same day and urged Congress to pass what he called a "fair version" of the CLARITY Act. Senate Majority Leader John Thune told Cointelegraph on August 7 that the vote would be delayed until September and that the bill would be taken up "first" after lawmakers return from recess.