U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, one of the Donald Trump administration's most senior economic voices, took to X on July 30 to press the Senate on stalled crypto legislation, and closed
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, one of the Donald Trump administration's most senior economic voices, took to X on July 30 to press the Senate on stalled crypto legislation, and closed his message by borrowing words from Bitcoin's anonymous creator.
Bessent's target was the CLARITY Act, the most significant crypto bill moving through Congress.
The legislation would split regulatory oversight of digital assets between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and shield blockchain developers from liability for how third parties use their code.
The House passed it more than a year ago, and Senate committees have since advanced their portions, but the bill remains stuck awaiting a floor vote.
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In his post, Bessent placed the blame squarely on Senate Democrats, writing that they are "choosing politics on the cusp of a major victory for American leadership."
He argued the bill materially strengthens compliance obligations for digital asset firms rather than weakening consumer protections, and noted that the Fraternal Order of Police, a major law enforcement group that once opposed the bill, has now endorsed it.
He suggested Democrats fear Senator Elizabeth Warren and the "Anti-Crypto Army" she has vowed to build.
Bessent ended with a line often attributed to Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous person or group who created Bitcoin in 2009 and has never been publicly identified:
"If you don't believe me or don't get it, I don't have time to try to convince you, sorry."
He is not the only prominent figure weighing in. A day earlier, Michael Saylor, co-founder and executive chairman of the world's largest Bitcoin treasury firm Strategy, posted his own pointed message as the bill stalled, writing that governments can delay Bitcoin adoption but "cannot stop Bitcoin."
A coalition including BlackRock, Fidelity, and Goldman Sachs has urged passage, but seven Democratic senators have blocked the bill over ethics concerns, pushing any vote to September at the earliest.
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