- Crypto lawyer John Deaton says the next holdup on the CLARITY Act will come mainly from Democrats refusing to hand over a legislative win to Trump and his Republican allies.
The chatter around the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act intensifies as all eyes turn to the prize this Tuesday. At around 2:15 PM ET, the US Senate will decide on the bill’s cloture. With at least 60 votes, it would stop a potential filibuster and advance the legislation to debate and voting on its amendments.
Amid the anticipation, crypto lawyer and Massachusetts senatorial candidate John Deaton believes the Democratic Party will pull all the stops to ensure the CLARITY Act does not pass before the midterm elections.
Democrats Will Not Hand Legislative Victory to Republicans in the CLARITY Act
Deaton claimed that even President Donald Trump’s recent concessions will not change a thing, as lawmakers on the opposing side will derail “any type of legislative victory before the midterms.” He reminded people that career politicians in Washington will “only care about partisan politics and gaining control of the government.”
The lawyer clarified, though, that he’s not a Trump guy, which he says allows him to make the point. However, he suggests that the Democrats’ disdain for the president was such that if “America was burning to the ground and it was Trump who held the water hose to put the fire out, they’d turn off the water.”
Deaton’s statement drew mixed responses, with many agreeing with him. On the other hand, others pointed out that the ethics concerns shouldn’t even exist if Trump and his family didn’t use their influence to earn billions from crypto-related ventures, which reeks of conflicts of interest.
Ethics Revisions’ Failure to Address Democrats’ Concerns
Trump has reportedly agreed to most of the compromises his Republican allies have presented to Democrats to ensure the CLARITY Act pushes through before the recess heading into the midterm elections. It includes his approval of 80% of the new language in the legislation’s ethics provisions.
Despite significant progress in behind-the-scenes negotiations, Politico’s Eleanor Mueller said Democrats remain unsatisfied with the changes. Quoting Senator Adam Schiff, the crypto bill’s text “doesn’t go far enough.”
The White House reporter noted that the senator and his allies think that the CLARITY Act’s revised version has “too many carveouts.” It specifically does not apply directly to the First Family’s crypto-related activities and still “functionally” exempts the president from possible accountability.
Nonetheless, pro-Bitcoin (BTC) Senator Cynthia Lummis insisted that Democrats are still “trying to figure out how to vote ‘No’ on the CLARITY Act after receiving 120+ wins and a majority of their ethics requests.”
Low Public Sentiment on the CLARITY Act’s Passage in 2026
Sentiment reflected in prediction markets remains near all-time lows for the CLARITY Act. To date, Polymarket shows only a 19% chance that Trump will sign it into law this year. Kalshi mirrors the same projection at 20%.
