- Democrats say GOP crypto bills enable Trump’s self-enrichment.
- Waters calls the legislation a stamp of approval for corruption.
- Lynch warns the bills expose US markets to foreign influence.
House Democrats are launching a counter-campaign to the Republican-led “Crypto Week,” accusing the GOP of enabling corruption and deregulation in service of President Trump’s crypto agenda.
Representatives Maxine Waters and Stephen Lynch announced “Anti-Crypto Corruption Week” on Friday, vowing to oppose three digital asset bills set for House votes next week — the Clarity Act, Genius Act, and Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act.
“These bills would make Congress complicit in Trump’s unprecedented crypto scam — one that’s enriched himself, his family, and the billionaire insiders in his cabinet,” Waters wrote in a statement. “They’re a brazen stamp of approval for the abuse of power we’re witnessing in real time.”
The Democrats argue the legislation lacks consumer safeguards, opens loopholes for decentralised finance, and would legitimise the president’s crypto ventures.
These include the TRUMP memecoin, World Liberty Financial, and American Bitcoin, an industrial-scale mining firm recently co-founded by Eric and Donald Trump Jr. in partnership with Hut 8.
Lynch warned the measures would expose the US financial system to national security risks and foreign influence.
Their pushback follows a tense Senate hearing on Wednesday, where Democrats voiced alarm over the Clarity Act’s provisions on tokenisation and DeFi.
Senator Elizabeth Warren warned that the bill could let companies like Tesla or Meta dodge SEC oversight simply by moving shares onto blockchains.
“It’s a back door to destroy the securities laws that have protected our capital markets for 100 years,” she said.
Senator Tim Scott, a Republican leading the Senate market structure effort, defended the bills as offering “light-touch guardrails” for innovation.
But scepticism runs deep across party lines. “We let the last generation of tech draft its own rules,” said Senator John Kennedy. “What we got looks like someone knocked over a urine sample.”
Kyle Baird is DL News’ Weekend Editor. Got a tip? Email at kbaird@dlnews.com.
