Democrats block stablecoin bill in blow to crypto

Legislation to create a framework for payment stablecoins failed to clear a key hurdle on the Senate floor Thursday, after several Democrats voted against moving forward with consideration of the bill.

Senators voted 48-49 to end debate on a motion to proceed on the GENIUS Act, short of the 60 votes required to move the measure further along the road to final passage.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) switched his vote from yea to nay in a procedural move that allows him to bring the measure up again.

Senate Democrats who previously supported the GENIUS Act withdrew support for the bill over the weekend, after Republican leadership sought to fast-track a vote on the legislation.

The senators accused Republicans of cutting off negotiations early, arguing that the latest version of the bill lacked strong enough provisions on anti-money laundering, national security and other issues.

The two sides have been engaged in negotiations for several days, with some reports of a deal. However, Senate Democrats said Thursday morning that they had still not seen new bill text.

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Digital Asset Subcommittee, asked for unanimous consent to delay the vote until Monday to give lawmakers more time.  

“We’ve made some great progress over this past week,” Gallego said on the Senate floor ahead of Thursday’s vote. “I greatly, greatly appreciate the work that we’ve done in a bipartisan manner.” 

"The reason you’re hearing some hesitancy, the legislation of this scope and importance really just cannot be rushed, and we need time both to educate our colleagues and people,” he added. “We’re not shutting down. We don’t want to shut this down to the point where we’re ending all this work that we have put into it.” 

“We want to bring this economy and this innovation to the United States, and I’m asking for that time,” he continued. “I want to be clear that you do have enough members across the aisle that want to see this pass in a good manner.” 

His request was ultimately rejected, and the Senate proceeded with the vote. 

Senate Republicans have expressed frustration with their colleagues across the aisle, arguing that they have worked on the legislation for months and incorporated their feedback. 

Thune slammed Democrats for blocking the legislation, emphasizing they would have had an opportunity to consider more tweaks on the floor before a final vote.  

“If Democrats were interested in further changes as they claim, they would have had the chance to make those changes on the floor,” Thune said. “All they had to do was vote for cloture. Not every bill that comes to the floor is a final bill. Now, that might be how it worked when they were in control, but Republicans are doing it differently.” 

Thune suggested that Democrats may be attempting to block Republicans and President Trump from securing a bipartisan win. 

“I just have to say frankly I just don’t get it. I don’t know what more they want,” he said, adding, “Which of course makes you wonder if this is about the bill at all. Or if it’s simply Democrats obstructing because they want to deny Republicans or President Trump a bipartisan win. Now given the fact that Democrats keep moving the goal posts, it’s hard not to suspect that is the case.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also ripped Democrats, saying the Senate "missed an opportunity to expand dollar dominance and U.S. influence in financial innovation."

"The world is watching while American lawmakers twiddle their thumbs. Senators who voted to stonewall U.S. ingenuity today face a simple choice: Either step up and lead or watch digital asset innovation move offshore," Bessent said in a statement posted to X.

Updated at 2:54 p.m. EDT