Sen. Tim Scott blames Democrats for Clarity Act stall in CoinDesk op-ed
In brief
- CoinDesk op-ed attributed to Sen. Tim Scott blames Democrats for the Clarity Act stall.
- No Senate Democrat voted to advance the bill last week, Scott wrote.
- Final proposal included over 120 changes Democrats had requested, according to Scott.
- Scott has called on the SEC and CFTC to set digital-asset rules while Congress keeps working.
What Scott says the bill contained
Scott wrote that the legislation would have established "rules of the road" for digital assets. He argued it would have helped bring down transaction costs for consumers. He said Republicans and Democrats had spent more than a year negotiating it.
According to Scott, the final proposal included over 120 changes Democrats requested. He listed several of them: ethics provisions relating to President Trump, ethics rules covering elected officials and their spouses, a role for state attorneys general in enforcement and additional money-laundering tools for law enforcement. (He ends each item in the op-ed with the line "Got it done.")
Democrats still said no, he wrote.
The vote and the calendar
Scott wrote that at least 12 Senate Democrats had said they wanted a deal. None of them voted to move the bill forward.
At least 12 Senate Democrats claimed they wanted to make a deal. But lip service is different than delivering results.
He also pointed to the timing. The vote came less than 40 days before Election Day, and Scott accused Democrats of putting what they felt was good for politics above good policy. He went further and argued they'd rather keep President Trump from achieving a major bipartisan legislative accomplishment than pass the bill.
Scott, who wrote that he ran a small business before he came to the Senate, framed his case around certainty for job creators. That's the core of his argument for why digital assets need a federal framework.
What comes next, in Scott's telling
After the bill stalled, Scott said he called on the SEC and CFTC to set clear rules of the road for digital assets while Congress continues its work. That's a request from a senator. The op-ed doesn't say either agency has acted on it.
It's also worth being clear about what the piece is. It's an opinion column, and it gives only Scott's account of the negotiations and the vote. It doesn't include a response from Senate Democrats or explain in their own words why they voted the way they did.
For now, the Clarity Act isn't moving. The op-ed doesn't say whether the Senate will vote on it again or when.
Frequently asked questions
What would the Clarity Act have done, according to Sen. Tim Scott?
In his CoinDesk op-ed, Scott wrote that the bill would have established rules of the road for digital assets. He argued it would have helped bring down transaction costs. He said the final proposal also included ethics rules, a role for state attorneys general in enforcement and more money-laundering tools for law enforcement.
What did Scott ask regulators to do after the Clarity Act stalled?
Scott said he called on the SEC and CFTC to set clear rules of the road for digital assets while Congress continues its work. That was his request as a senator. The op-ed doesn't say whether either agency has acted on it.
