On Monday, several Senate Democrats announced they would hold a press conference this week to voice their opposition to Clarity and what they said is its “failure to rein in President Donald Trump’s corrupt crypto plans.” Senator Murphy will join Senators Chris Van Hollen and Jeff Merkley at this event on Capitol Hill, which will also highlight their claims that the crypto industry’s influence in Washington is causing “increasing political corruption.”
One of the lawmakers involved in the ethics discussions, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a New York Democrat, recently noted that Trump’s largest source of income in 2025, $636 million, came from issuing the memecoin that bore his name. She said she and fellow Democrats have pushed to make it illegal for presidents to issue or sponsor digital assets.
“We cannot let self-dealing destroy an opportunity to strengthen consumer protections, crack down on illicit financing, and expand economic opportunity for the millions of Americans our financial system has left behind,” Gillibrand said in a statement. “The time to act now is now – and that must include ethics reforms that prohibit members of Congress, the president and their spouses from profiting from their office.”
Although Clarity needs many Democrats to join with Republicans if supporters are to reach the necessary 60-vote threshold for Senate passage, Gillibrand and other Democrats said the bill could not pass until that issue is resolved.
