Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming renewed her criticism of Senate Democrats on Thursday, accusing them of stalling the long-awaited Clarity Act despite nearly a year of negotiations. Speaking on the Crypto in America podcast, Lummis said the bill could have passed months ago if not for repeated last-minute changes from the other side of the aisle.

Lummis said work on the bill began around last Labor Day, meaning Democrats have had roughly 11 months to negotiate its terms. Over that period, she said, the legislation has swelled from about 300 pages to nearly 700 as both sides layered in additional provisions.

Lummis Blasts Democrats for Stalling Crypto Clarity Act
Image via Bitcoin Magazine

Frustration over shifting positions

Lummis was blunt about her frustration with the back-and-forth over the bill's structure, describing a pattern of Democrats repeatedly reversing their own positions on which chamber's version of the text to use.

“This messing around, this pussyfooting around with, I want to change this, no, I want to change it back, I like the House version, no, let's go with the Senate version, and then bringing last minute changes to this bill that could have been brought weeks ago — in fact, months ago — is absurd, and I'm just tired of being played.”

She added that when negotiations began, “the Clarity Act was about 300 pages — it's getting closer to 700 pages,” pointing to the bill's growth as evidence of how much back-and-forth has gone into the text without producing a final vote.

A vote still targeted before recess

Despite the frustration, Lummis said she still expects Senate Majority Leader John Thune to bring the bill to a vote before Congress departs for its August recess. “Sen. Thune has kept a place for the CLARITY Act on the agenda before the August recess…and I believe he does intend to go through with it…We will be moving forward,” she said.

The Clarity Act already passed the House in 2025 with bipartisan support, and an updated Senate version addressing ethics concerns was introduced last week. Whether that revised text can clear the chamber before lawmakers leave Washington remains the immediate test of Lummis's optimism.