--- title: Why Top Democrats Are Revolting on Crypto Legislation description: Top Democrats are threatening to derail crypto legislation in the light of Donald Trump's crypto business dealings. canonical: https://time.com/7283210/congress-crypto-trump-democrats/ author: Andrew R. Chow article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2025-05-06T20:24:40.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:53:33.480Z article:section: Politics og:title: Why Top Democrats Are Revolting on Crypto Legislation og:description: Trump’s expanding crypto investments have coincided with a revolt from Democrats expected to back a stablecoin bill og:url: https://time.com/7283210/congress-crypto-trump-democrats/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt81aa310c6a599cd0/6998c66e47fe51633855bb0b/GettyImages-2197229857.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: Waters Hill og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Why Top Democrats Are Revolting on Crypto Legislation twitter:description: Trump’s expanding crypto investments have coincided with a revolt from Democrats expected to back a stablecoin bill twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt81aa310c6a599cd0/6998c66e47fe51633855bb0b/GettyImages-2197229857.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Why Top Democrats Are Revolting on Crypto Legislation > Sponsored content. 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Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. by [Andrew R. Chow](https://time.com/author/andrew-r-chow/) and [Nik Popli](https://time.com/author/nik-popli/) May 6, 2025 8:24 PM UTC  Ranking member Maxine Waters and Chairman French Hill at a House Financial Services Committee hearing in February 2025. Ranking member Maxine Waters and Chairman French Hill at a House Financial Services Committee hearing in February 2025. Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc--Getty Images) by [Andrew R. Chow](https://time.com/author/andrew-r-chow/) and [Nik Popli](https://time.com/author/nik-popli/) May 6, 2025 8:24 PM UTC Just a few months ago, the crypto industry seemed unstoppable in Washington. It had the support of a [pro-crypto president](https://time.com/7173421/what-donald-trump-election-win-means-for-crypto/) in Donald Trump, a slew of new [pro-crypto legislators](https://time.com/7049001/crypto-election-2024/) in both parties, and newly elevated [regulators](https://www.benefitspro.com/2025/01/23/trumps-sec-launches-crypto-task-force-to-provide-clear-guidelines-for-digital-assets/) who pledged to not impede the industry’s growth. Many assumed the speedy passage of pro-crypto legislation as a foregone conclusion after Trump [asked](https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/jobs-report-stock-market-today-dow-nasdaq-sp500-03-07-2025/card/trump-says-he-hopes-to-see-stablecoin-legislation-before-august-recess-qhlCtcR19pBBO36PDFm8?utm%5Fsource=tradgov.beehiiv.com&utm%5Fmedium=newsletter&utm%5Fcampaign=is-it-worth-putting-a-stablecoin-bill-on-hold&%5Fbhlid=a32c4eb5dc11c187c0c684c59c700dc304b9709b) Congress to send him a stablecoin bill to sign by August. That momentum hit a major snag over the last few days, as Trump’s expanding investment in the industry coincides with a revolt from Democrats who had previously supported the leading crypto legislation. On Tuesday, California Rep. Maxine Waters, the ranking Democrat on theHouse Financial Services Committee, objected to a hearing on crypto, effectively blocking it from taking place, and called for legislation that would ban Presidents and members of Congress from owning crypto assets and firms. Trump’s family owns and operates World Liberty Financial, which debuted a stablecoin this week that immediately [shot into the top ten stablecoins](https://news.bitcoin.com/world-liberty-financials-usd1-cracks-top-10-as-trump-tied-stablecoin-supply-swells/) by market capitalization. In the Senate, a group of nine Democrats [announced](https://mailchi.mp/gallego/gallego-colleagues-issue-statement-on-genius-act?e=f816122ee0) they would not support a stablecoin bill, called the GENIUS Act, without major changes, significantly narrowing its pathway to 60 votes. Meanwhile, Senate Banking Committee staff and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the ranking Democrat on the committee, circulated a memo to her fellow Senate Democrats urging them to demand amendments that might address the bill’s national security concerns. “If Congress is going to supercharge the use of stablecoins and other cryptocurrencies, it must include safeguards that make it harder for criminals, terrorists, and foreign adversaries to exploit the financial system and put our national security at risk,” read the memo, which was obtained by TIME. The GENIUS Act is still headed for a vote in the Senateon Thursday, Politico reported. Senate Majority Leader John Thune [said](https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/05/05/congress/thune-senate-crypto-bill-00330308) he was open to making changes to reach a compromise that addresses Democrats’ concerns. Here are some of the major objections to the bill, and how the fight may play out this week. ## Conflict of interest concerns Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies designed to hold the value of a U.S. dollar. For many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, passing a stablecoin bill seemed more feasible this year than tackling a larger crypto market structure bill, especially because stablecoins are less volatile and their value is usually tied to actual money sitting in a bank. **Read More:** [_What Are Stablecoins?_](https://time.com/7274685/what-are-best-stablecoins-crypto/) But in March, Trump’s World Liberty Financial announced a new stablecoin, leading to concerns that the new legislation would essentially give Trump even moreoversight over his own financial product. (In February, Trump issued an [executive order](https://www.npr.org/2025/02/19/nx-s1-5302481/trump-independent-agencies) placing independent financial regulators like the FTC, FCC and SEC under his own control.) Trump has only escalated his crypto dealings. Last week, World Liberty Financial [announced](https://abcnews.go.com/US/trump-family-crypto-venture-tapped-part-2b-emirati/story?id=121415842) that an Emirati company planned to use the firm’s new stablecoin for a $2 billion investment in Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. Trump also announced that he would host an exclusive dinner for top investors of his $TRUMP meme coin—which Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, astaunch Trump supporter and cryptocurrency advocate, [admitted](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/senate-republicans-raise-red-flags-trumps-private-dinner-meme-coin-hol-rcna204293) “gave \[her\] pause.” Waters had been working on stablecoin legislation for years. But last month, she reversed course, [saying that](https://x.com/BrendanPedersen/status/1907439238255137181) she opposed any bill that would allow Trump to own a stablecoin. On Tuesday, she walked out of a joint House hearing on crypto, latersaying: “I'm deeply concerned that Republicans aren't just ignoring Trump's corruption. They are legitimatizing Trump's and his family's efforts to enrich themselves on the backs of average Americans.” Waters then staged her own hearing on stablecoins. Notably, however, several Democrats remained at the original hearing, including Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts, the ranking member on a subcommittee focused on digital assets, and Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota. "This is a really important conversation. I'm here because I think we need to be engaged, and part of the discussion," Craig said. Craig, however, agreed that Waters was raising important issues. “It's important and it's legitimate to call out the self-dealing from the Trump administration related to hawking meme coins from the White House,” she said. “It's corrupt, it's wrong, and it makes this process of coming together to regulate crypto more partisan." ## National Security Concerns While some Democrats are focused on stopping Trump from owning a stablecoin while he’s in office, others are concerned that the current stablecoin bills in Congress could have unintended consequences. Warren, who has long been a crypto skeptic, has particularly honed in on the ripple effects on national security, arguing that the bill would make it easier for terrorists and malicious state actors to steal and cash out illicit funds. In February, hackers backed by the North Korean government stole $1.5 billion in cryptocurrencies from the crypto exchange Bybit, as part of a [larger continuing effort](https://cyberscoop.com/bybit-lazarus-group-north-korea-ethereum/) to steal crypto funds from around the world. The Bybit hack was the largest in crypto history—and [foreign policy experts](https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2024/05/27/how-north-koreas-cryptocurrency-theft-supports-foreign-policy-goals/) believe that the stolen funds are being used to fund the development of missile and nuclear weapons technology. So Warren and Banking Committee staffers circulated a memo on Monday, which calls for changes to the GENIUS Act, including the implementation of strict anti-money laundering requirements on exchanges handling digital assets. It argues that the bill should extend U.S. sanctions laws to stablecoins, and that stablecoin issuers should be required to monitor blockchains and report criminal activity. The nine Democrats who revoked their support of the GENIUS Act now hold significant leverage over the bill. It is not clear what changes to the bill would be enough to regain their support. “We've been very clear to our Republican colleagues for weeks about the changes that we need,” Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, one of those nine Democrats, told TIME on Tuesday. Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego, who led the Democrats’ statement opposing the bill, told TIME that his priorities were beefing up consumer protections and national security issues. “We can tighten up the ‘who can issue, what country can issue’ question,” he says. “It’s incredibly important when it comes to closing some of the [Tether](https://time.com/7274685/what-are-best-stablecoins-crypto/) loopholes.” Democratic Sen. Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, a co-sponsor of the bill, told TIME she believes that the bill should require crypto companies dealing with stablecoins to adopt anti-money laundering (AML) and countering the financing of terrorism (CFL) rules. “We still have a little time, but everybody's motivated, and we're all working together to try to get to the best place we can,” she says. “We want to make sure that all of the concerns around national security are addressed.” Republican Sen. Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, one of the bill’s authors, appeared unfazed by the challenges. “I’m beyond optimistic. I’m confident it will pass,” he told TIME. Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders announced that he would host a livestream with other critics of the GENIUS Act on Wednesday to discuss how it “threatens the stability of our financial system.” The crypto industry is continuing to push for the bill’s passage. Dante Disparte, **a leader at** the stablecoin issuer Circle, tells TIME that more harms come from the absence of legislation. "Past failures to pass bipartisan stablecoin legislation have harmed U.S. consumers, markets, national security, and dollar competitiveness,” he wrote in an email, citing the failure of the foreign stablecoin project [Terra-Luna](https://time.com/6177567/terra-ust-crash-crypto/) in 2022\. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7283210/congress-crypto-trump-democrats/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7283210/congress-crypto-trump-democrats/"},"headline":"Why Top Democrats Are Revolting on Crypto Legislation","datePublished":"2025-05-06T20:24:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:53:33.480Z","description":"Top Democrats are threatening to derail crypto legislation in the light of Donald Trump's crypto business dealings.","url":"https://time.com/7283210/congress-crypto-trump-democrats/","keywords":["Congress","Tech","News Desk","biztech2030","uspoliticspolicy","News desk edits"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt81aa310c6a599cd0/6998c66e47fe51633855bb0b/GettyImages-2197229857.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Andrew R. 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