US President Donald Trump described himself as a "big crypto guy" on 6 Jul and acknowledged getting involved in the industry partly for political reasons, comments that risk sharpening an ethics dispute already threatening Democratic support for the CLARITY Act as Congress faces a narrowing window to pass the bill.
"I've become a big crypto guy only for one reason: if we don't have it, China's going to have it," Trump said during an event promoting Trump Accounts, a government-backed investment programme for children. He added that the US had "taken over crypto" and said he had become a supporter of the sector after initially knowing little about it.
"It’s a huge industry and I got involved in a little bit for politics, you know, because I realize there are a lot of people who love crypto," he said. Trump added that, as a businessman, he had seen "a lot of money starting to come in with Bitcoin" and concluded the sector had "a lot of life."
The remarks come as Senate negotiations over landmark crypto market-structure legislation remain entangled in demands for restrictions on public officials, including the president and his family, profiting from the industry.
The dispute over ethics intensified in late June after Trump reported more than $1.4bn in income from his family's crypto ventures in 2025, according to his annual financial disclosure. The White House has denied that Trump or his family have engaged in conflicts of interest.
Ethics talks strain
Democrats have pushed for restrictions preventing political officials from profiting from crypto ventures, an issue that has become a fault line in the Senate's market-structure debate. Reuters reported in May that several Democrats opposed the bill partly because they believed it should do more to prevent political officials from profiting from the industry.
The heightened conflict over ethics threatens to turn even former supporters of the measure against it. Democratic senators Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md) voted in May to advance the Senate Banking Committee's market-structure proposal, but both have recently called for stronger ethics provisions.
Speaking on Bloomberg Television on 23 Jun, Alsobrooks said lawmakers could still get legislation across the finish line before the November midterm elections but added: "Ethics and illicit finance absolutely must be addressed."
Gallego has separately criticized Trump's crypto interests. Following the latest disclosure, he accused Trump on X of "using the presidency to profit off the American people."
Four-week window
Kristin Smith, president of the Solana Policy Institute, said on 6 Jul that the Senate would have only four weeks to act after returning from its Independence Day recess on 13 Jul, with the following days critical to getting the CLARITY Act to Trump's desk before the August break.
The bill's path remains narrow. Republicans control 53 Senate seats, leaving them at least seven votes short of the 60 typically needed to advance major legislation if all GOP senators support it. Gallego and Alsobrooks are therefore part of a small group of Democrats whose support could prove decisive.
The narrowing calendar has also weighed on expectations for passage. Galaxy Research cut its estimate that the CLARITY Act becomes law in 2026 to 50% on 29 Jun, down from 60% earlier in June. The firm had raised its estimate to 75% after the Banking Committee advanced the legislation in May but later reversed much of that optimism as the remaining legislative window tightened.
