New Democracy: CLARITY’s Ethics Language Is a Start, Not a Solution

WASHINGTON (July 23, 2026) — Today, New Democracy released the following statement on the ethics provision circulating as part of the latest Digital Asset Market Clarity Act draft:

“The people writing the rules can’t be the ones cashing in on them. That’s the baseline we should expect from anyone in office,” said Colin Mortimer, co-founder and Director of New Democracy. “This provision sunsets in 2029, puts enforcement in the hands of Donald Trump’s own Justice Department, and gives regulators a year before it even takes effect. It says nothing about the billion dollars in crypto income the president has already disclosed, or his stake in World Liberty Financial.

New Democracy has said from the start that crypto isn’t where Congress should be spending its limited floor time. Voters consistently rank it far behind affordability and cost of living concerns. But if Democrats are going to engage on this bill at all, the price of admission has to be real ethics guardrails, not language designed to clear a PR hurdle.

“Senator Alsobrooks put it well. An ethics rule enforced by the DOJ is an unserious offer,” said Mortimer. “We’re not asking anything of this bill we wouldn’t ask of any other. No self-dealing, independent enforcement, and rules that don’t expire just because the calendar says recess is coming."

New Democracy is calling on the Senate to keep negotiating rather than rush a flawed bill to the floor, and to make the ethics provision permanent, independently enforced, and applicable to officials’ existing holdings.

The statement follows a six-figure ad campaign New Democracy launched in May across digital, streaming and television targeting eleven states and urging voters to tell their senators to reject the bill in its current form. The group has argued that CLARITY is a relatively low priority for voters compared to issues like affordability, and that lawmakers should be spending their floor time accordingly.

New Democracy is a support network and home base for pragmatic Democratic leaders – governors, mayors, state officials, and Members of Congress – with the mission of expanding the party’s appeal across Middle America and making Democrats competitive everywhere. Since 2022 New Democracy has invested more than $10 million in digital and television ads supporting Democrats in key races across the country.

Learn more about New Democracy by visiting newdemocracy.net and following us on Facebook, X, and YouTube.

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Media Contact: Ian O’Keefe – iokeefe@newdemocracy.net