Merkley Blasts Senate Republicans Blocking Strong Anti-Corruption Measures in Cryptocurrency Legislation

Without any guardrails, GENIUS Act will accelerate Trump’s crypto corruption

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley today issued the following statement after Senate Republicans repeatedly blocked his efforts on the Senate floor to end crypto-related conflicts of interest by President Trump and other elected officials:

“Trump’s crypto schemes are the Mount Everest of corruption! They open the door for special interests to buy access to the President—with the President pocketing about $1 billion in profit in just a few months, according to Forbes Magazine. Passing the GENIUS Act without strong anti-corruption measures stamps a Congressional seal of approval on this blatant crypto corruption, which should outrage all of us.

“Republicans, however, want to ram through this fatally flawed legislation without amendments. This ensures there are no guardrails to prevent the sale of government policy by elected officials in Congress or the White House.

“We must ban Trump-style crypto corruption so all elected federal officials—including the President, Vice President, and Members of Congress—cannot profit from shady crypto schemes. I won’t stop leading the charge for Congressional oversight over these incredibly corrupt practices that endanger our national security and erode public trust in government.”

This week, Merkley took to the Senate floor to offer his amendments to ensure President Trump and other elected officials can’t issue and profit from offering stablecoins and other cryptocurrencies. Republicans objected.

Yesterday, Merkley went to the floor and pushed for a vote to address this blatant corruption. Merkley also raised a point of order on the bill for violating Senate budget rules. These procedural votes ultimately slow down the GENIUS Act process which is not expected to include any amendments despite failed assurances of an open amendment process, and forced Republicans to explain why there should not be debate on the President’s potential violation of the Constitution’s emoluments clause through his crypto ventures, as the Senate considers legislation on digital assets.

Merkley leads the End Crypto Corruption Act—cosponsored by 24 Senators including Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY)—to crack down on cryptocurrency-related corruption by elected officials at the highest levels of the federal government.

Previously, Merkley and Ranking Member of the Senate Banking Committee Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) sent a letter to Office of Government Ethics Acting Director Jamieson Greer to raise significant concerns about a billion-dollar deal between a Trump-backed crypto company and a foreign crypto firm. Merkley and Warren sent two follow-up letters requesting further information on this shady deal and how it appears to enrich President Trump, his family, and members of his administration.

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