Democratic Party Votes to Block Senate Cryptocurrency Bill

Original Title: Democrats vote to reject Senate crypto bill

Original Source: POLITICO

Original Translation: BitpushNews

Tennessee Republican Senator Bill Hagerty, a key sponsor of the bill, lamented the Senate's vote against the procedural motion, stating that rejecting it is equivalent to "strangling the cryptocurrency industry in America. George Walker IV/AP Photo

On Thursday, Senate Democrats voted to reject a procedural motion that would have allowed the Senate to consider a landmark cryptocurrency bill led by Republicans. This dealt a significant blow to Republicans' first major policy push after gaining control of Congress and the White House.

The Senate narrowly rejected the motion to proceed with the cryptocurrency bill with a vote of 48-49, failing to reach the required 60-vote threshold, effectively stalling the bill. The previous week saw chaotic negotiations between Republican supporters and key Democratic opponents. All Democratic senators and three Republican senators—including Rand Paul of Kentucky and Josh Hawley of Missouri—voted against the motion. Democratic negotiators had pushed to postpone the vote to next week to allow more time for discussions on potential amendments, but Republican leaders insisted on proceeding with the vote.

Arizona Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego said, "We need time." He had previously supported the committee version of the bill and assisted Democratic negotiations this week. He emphasized, "We are not here to kill all effort, nor do we want to discredit all the work we put in. We want to bring this kind of economy and innovation to America."

The vote was a major setback for Senate Majority Leader John Thune and other Republican supporters of cryptocurrency, potentially jeopardizing broader efforts by Republicans this year to advance multiple cryptocurrency-friendly digital asset bills. Thune voted against the bill and submitted a motion to reconsider, which would allow him to reintroduce the bill in the future.

Bill Hagerty, the main sponsor of the bill and a Republican Senator from Tennessee, expressed disappointment during his Senate speech, stating that the vote against the motion is "strangling the cryptocurrency industry in America, very regrettable." He and other Republicans called on Democratic support for the procedural motion to allow more time for discussions before the final vote.

On Thursday morning, Senator Toon said in the Senate, "If Senators wish to have the opportunity to further amend the bill, I encourage them to support the motion to end debate. Once we enter the bill discussion stage, we can openly discuss amendments on the Senate floor. We have maintained an open process on this bill all along, so why stop now?"

The bill aims to establish the first regulatory framework in the United States for a digital currency pegged to the US dollar (known as a stablecoin). The bill had previously received bipartisan support but hit a snag over the weekend when nine Democratic senators who were potential supporters stated that they did not support the latest version introduced by the Republican leader before the floor vote.

Key Republicans, including Hagerty and Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, held multiple closed-door meetings this week in an attempt to persuade these Democratic dissenters and discuss potential amendments that could attract Democratic support. However, negotiations failed to yield a substantive agreement before the vote.

Democratic dissenters who were not directly involved in this week's negotiations expressed hours before the vote that they had no knowledge of the potential agreement. Democratic Senator from Colorado John Hickenlooper said, "If I don't know what's in the bill, I won't vote in favor." He had signed the Democratic statement over the weekend, stating that the latest version of the bill was insufficient. "We have gone through multiple versions before, they say the text includes certain content, but the actual content is not what we expected."

The vote was a victory for Massachusetts Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who has consistently opposed the Republican-led stablecoin bill. She told reporters before the vote, "The only version we've seen is the one proposed by the Republicans, which has issues in four key areas." She called the bill a promoter of "Trump corruption," a threat to national security, a weakening of consumer protection, and a "high-risk endeavor that could ultimately destroy the American economy."

Democrats who support cryptocurrency stated that they remain committed to reaching an agreement that can move forward. Virginia Democratic Senator Mark Warner, a key dissenter and a major participant in this week's negotiations, said in a statement, "While we have made significant progress on the GENIUS Act, the work is not done, and I cannot in good conscience ask my colleagues to vote on an incomplete bill text. I continue to work diligently to ensure the bill is perfected. I plan to continue collaborating with my colleagues to strengthen this legislation to promote innovation while protecting the interests of the American people."

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