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Two Democratic legislators on the US Senate Banking Committee and Senate Agriculture Committee, anticipated to cast their votes on a market structure measure shortly, have indicated that they would oppose the bill without an inquiry into two White House officials.
In a letter sent Tuesday to officials in the US State Department, Commerce Department, and Department of Ethics, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Elissa Slotkin requested authorities to probe into US President Donald Trump’s AI and cryptocurrency czar, David Sacks, along with his Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff.
The two Democratic legislators expressed that they could not endorse legislation intended to create a digital asset market structure currently progressing through the Senate without clarity on whether “politically connected crypto interests are jeopardizing our national security.”
The letter from Warren and Slotkin originated from a Sept. 15 New York Times article discussing a $2-billion agreement between the Abu Dhabi-based investment firm MGX and cryptocurrency exchange Binance. The investment, announced in March, was finalized using the USD1 stablecoin provided by the Trump family’s cryptocurrency company, World Liberty Financial. According to The New York Times, Sacks and Witkoff facilitated the transaction by giving the UAE access to AI chips.
“In the annals of our country’s foreign policy, one is hard-pressed to identify two senior officials with such profound conflicts of interest involved in decisions related to national security,” the two senators wrote. “Such unchecked conflicts of interest have no place in the US government, and we urge you to conduct a prompt and comprehensive assessment of these claims.”
The letter further stated:
“This information is also essential as Congress contemplates legislation for digital asset market structure and attempts to ensure that cryptocurrency corruption does not compromise our national security.”
Related: Trump’s World Liberty mints 9% of USD1 supply after Waller speech
Warren, the lead member of the Senate Banking Committee, and Slotkin, a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, could play pivotal roles as votes and indicate the direction for other Democrats when the chamber is expected to deliberate on a market structure bill.
Last week, a coalition of 12 Democrats indicated they would collaborate with Republicans on market structure, as long as they advocated “preventing corruption and abuse” and other stipulations in any prospective legislation. Warren stated in August that she supported regulations on digital assets, but was opposed to any legislation “crafted by the cryptocurrency industry.”
Crypto bill already postponed after congressional recess
Even though a market structure bill in the US House of Representatives initially encountered some obstacles due to Republicans’ apprehensions regarding central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), the legislation advanced through the chamber in July, alongside the stablecoin GENIUS bill and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance Act. The House market structure bill, named the CLARITY Act, passed with bipartisan backing, with 78 Democrats voting in favor.
However, after transitioning to the Senate, the legislation has faced comparable difficulties. Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, a committee member and a key advocate for the market structure bill, remarked in August that Republicans wanted to have the bill out of committee by the month’s end. Yet, no scheduled vote seemed to be on the banking committee’s agenda at the time of publication.
An individual familiar with the situation informed Cointelegraph that Republicans were interacting with Democrats over the Senate bill, titled the Responsible Financial Innovation Act, and were still hopeful to enact the legislation into law by 2026. Cointelegraph reached out to the White House for a statement, but had not acquired a response by the time of publication.
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