What Did They Say?

Sep 15, 2026

Hours Before the Crypto Bill's Make-or-Break Senate Vote, Trump Agrees to Ethics Rules on His Own Family — Lummis Says He "Voluntarily Agreed to Unprecedented Ethics Restrictions," and Elizabeth Warren Calls the Deal a "Weak Fig Leaf" That Will Not Stop "His Next $1.4 Billion in Crypto Profits"

Late on Sept. 13, 2026, Sens. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), John Boozman (R-Ark.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.) released what they called the final text of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act — the CLARITY Act — ahead of a cloture vote Majority Leader John Thune had scheduled for 2:15 p.m. on Sept. 15. The sponsors said the draft contained 126 substantive changes requested by Democrats and adopted substantially all of the Tillis-Gallego ethics language, including a role for state attorneys general in enforcing conflict-of-interest rules against federal officials. President Trump, whose 2025 financial disclosure reported roughly $1.4 billion in crypto-related income, signed off on most of it. The concession did not move the Democrats whose votes the bill needs to reach 60. On the Senate floor the night of Sept. 14, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called the ethics deal a "weak fig leaf" and argued the enforcement design means "the law could never be enforced against Donald Trump." Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) — co-author of the ethics framework Republicans said they had adopted — told reporters the same evening that the final language "leaves a lot to be desired." Seven Senate Democrats had already said in July that the Republican text "falls short," and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) has said she will not support market-structure legislation without an enforceable ban on officials profiting from crypto. Seventeen state attorneys general and the banking industry also came out against the final draft. A failed cloture vote would effectively end the bill for 2026, seven weeks before the midterms.

“The full cost of today's result may not be known for years to come, but this much is clear: it increases the risk that the standards that global financial markets adhere to in the future will be those of Brussels or Beijing, rather than Washington and New York.”
Patrick Witt (R) · Sep 15, 2026

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Hours Before the Crypto Bill's Make-or-Break Senate Vote, Trump Agrees to Ethics Rules on His Own Family — Lummis Says He "Voluntarily Agreed to Unprecedented Ethics Restrictions," and Elizabeth Warren Calls the Deal a "Weak Fig Leaf" That Will Not Stop "His Next $1.4 Billion in Crypto Profits"