Lummis Urges Democrats to Pass Clarity Act, Citing “Now or Never” Moment
Senator Cynthia Lummis, a staunch advocate for Bitcoin and digital assets, has asserted that Democrats have exhausted their justifications for opposing the Clarity Act, but time may be running out for supporters of the landmark cryptocurrency legislation.
Ahead of a crucial Senate vote on Tuesday, the Wyoming Republican argued that the finalized text of the Clarity Act addresses Democratic concerns, incorporating over 120 negotiated amendments and a new ethics framework that extends to the President, Vice President, members of Congress, and federal judges. Her message to her colleagues was clear: accept the concessions.
However, Lummis cautioned that if lawmakers fail to secure sufficient Democratic support for cloture—the procedural step that would end debate and advance the bill to a final vote—this opportunity may not arise again.
“It’s now or never for the Clarity Act,” Lummis stated on X, formerly Twitter. She elaborated in remarks to reporters earlier in the day that a failed cloture vote would likely mean the end of the bill. “It’s over. Because we’ve been working on this bill for over a year, and we’ve given them over 120 of their requests. That’s enough,” she reportedly said, according to Punchbowl.
The Clarity Act represents the cryptocurrency industry’s long-sought market structure legislation, aiming to divide oversight of digital assets between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), thereby providing most tokens with a defined regulatory status for the first time. The House of Representatives passed its version of the bill in July 2025 by a vote of 294-134. The Senate Banking Committee followed suit in May 2026, approving the bill with a 15-9 vote, which included only two Democratic votes.
Tuesday’s vote is a motion for cloture on H.R. 3633, not a final passage vote. Ending debate requires 60 votes, meaning Republicans, who hold a 53-seat majority, need approximately seven Democrats to vote in favor. To garner this support, the White House has agreed to new provisions prohibiting federally elected officials, judges, and their spouses from issuing or sponsoring digital assets. These provisions would be enforceable by state attorneys general and have no expiration date.
Prediction markets have experienced significant fluctuations throughout the week. Polymarket’s odds for the Clarity Act becoming law in 2026 initially rose to 35% on Monday following the release of the final text, but then dropped to 19% on Tuesday after Democrats circulated a counterproposal. Current market sentiment suggests a 55% chance that more than 50 senators will vote yes on Tuesday, but only a 32% probability that the bill will successfully clear the 60-vote threshold. Predictors on Myriad Markets have set the odds as low as 17.5%, a slight increase from earlier lows around 12%.
Not all Democrats are convinced that the ethics provisions are sufficiently robust. Senator Elizabeth Warren, the ranking Democrat on the Banking Committee, intends to argue on the Senate floor that the new rules still contain enforcement loopholes and do not explicitly cover entities like the Trump family’s World Liberty Financial venture. Several other Democratic holdouts have echoed concerns regarding consumer protections and safeguards against illicit finance, despite Republicans revising the bill twice during the recent recess.
If cloture fails, the bill is effectively stalled for 2026, as the legislative calendar is expected to become dominated by midterm election campaigning shortly thereafter. Supporters and community bankers have spent weeks lobbying senators directly in their home states regarding the bill’s remaining provisions, including stablecoin yield rules that continue to concern the banking industry.
Traders appear to be pricing in the prevailing uncertainty. Bitcoin is trading at $76,212, down 3.3% and approximately 7% from its September high. Ether has fallen 4.64% to $2,414.55, and XRP is down 2.61% at $1.38. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization has decreased by 2.99% to $2.6 trillion, even as the Fear & Greed Index remains at 65, indicating a “greed” sentiment.
Derivatives desks are directly experiencing this volatility. The market has seen $636.89 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours as a bearish sentiment grows, with liquidations split between $466.19 million in long positions and $170.69 million in short positions.
The vote is scheduled for today at 2:15 p.m. ET.
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