CLARITY Act White House Meeting Set For Thursday — Trump And Senators Sit Down To Break The Deadlock

Several senators are heading to the White House on Thursday afternoon to brief President Donald Trump on the CLARITY Act and its path to passage, Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio confirmed in an interview with Politico. 

What’s Still Unresolved Heading Into Thursday’s White House Meeting 

The bill arrives at Thursday’s meeting carrying three unresolved disputes that have blocked it from reaching a floor vote despite clearing the Senate Banking Committee 15-9 in May. 

The stablecoin yield provision remains contested by 78 banking groups who warned last week that Section 404’s language could allow stablecoins to function as deposit substitutes, pulling money away from community banks. 

The Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA) provision — which shields non-custodial software developers from being classified as money transmitters — has drawn law enforcement scrutiny. 

However, three major law enforcement organizations, including the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) and the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA), have shifted toward supporting the bill this month. 

And the ethics provision, which would prevent government officials and their families from profiting off digital assets, remains the most politically charged obstacle of the three.

Ethics Is Still The Biggest Problem 

That last point is what makes Thursday’s White House meeting particularly significant. Trump’s 2025 financial disclosure, released last month, revealed more than $1.4 billion in crypto-related income — a figure that hardened Democratic demands for enforceable ethics language and prompted Senator Elizabeth Warren to send a letter this week declaring the bill cannot reach the floor without it. 

The two Democratic votes the CLARITY Act needs most — Senators Ruben Gallego of Arizona and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland — have both conditioned their support on a satisfactory ethics agreement.

Senator Bernie Moreno, who has been involved in the negotiations, said Thursday’s session will cover the full scope of the bill rather than any single provision. “We’ll be talking about the entirety of the bill. I mean, obviously the president’s been very engaged in this bill,” he said. 

“He’s the one who’s really driven the innovation that I think will pay dividends.” He described the purpose of the meeting as giving Trump an update on the CLARITY Act and its “path to success.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Wednesday he hopes to bring the CLARITY Act to the floor for a vote during the current work period, which ends August 7. When asked directly whether he would hold a vote even without a Democratic deal, Thune left the door open. “At some point, we’ll vote on it, yeah,” he said.

Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who helped broker the stablecoin yield compromise between the crypto and banking industries, put a sharper point on the timeline. 

“I’m hoping that we can come up with some agreement by the end of this week,” he said. “I think it’s critical if we’re going to try and get this across the floor before August recess.”

CLARITY Act Enters Its Final Days 

On when a final draft text might circulate, Senator Cynthia Lummis said a version could be distributed as soon as Wednesday but that the timing was ultimately Thune’s call. 

The remaining question is whether the CLARITY Act draft goes out with or without the ethics language. “There’s been some differences of opinion among senators about whether we should distribute a draft with or without the ethics language,” Lummis said. 

“If a decision is made to do it before there’s a final stamp of approval on ethics, it will come out with brackets saying ethics to be added. But if a decision is made to wait until the ethics language is approved, then it will take a few more days.”

Supporters of the CLARITY Act are pushing to finish before the August recess. After that, the dynamics of the midterm elections will make passing the legislation significantly harder. 

Galaxy Digital currently puts the odds of passage this year at 50-50 — a figure that could shift materially depending on what comes out of Thursday’s White House meeting.

Featured image generated with OpenArt.