House Democrats Walk Out of Crypto Hearing Amid Tense Moments
Several House Democrats walked out of a hearing on cryptocurrency legislation Tuesday after Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) objected over concerns about President Trump’s recent ventures in the digital asset industry.
Waters, the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, sought to block the joint hearing between the panel and the House Agriculture Committee with her objection, sparking several tense minutes between lawmakers.
House Financial Services Chair French Hill (R-Ark.) slammed Waters’ move, accusing her of throwing a partisan wedge into bipartisan efforts to discuss market structure legislation for digital assets.
“Today, the ranking member has expressed concern about the conflicts of interest, which is why she’s disrupted today’s joint hearing,” Hill said. “Through her actions today, the ranking member has thrown partisanship into what has historically been a strong, good working bipartisan relationship.”
Despite the inability to continue with an official joint hearing due to lack of unanimous consent, House Republicans and some Democrats opted to remain and hold an informal roundtable with the witnesses.
Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), ranking member on the House Financial Services Digital Assets Subcommittee, highlighted concerns about Trump’s crypto moves, particularly the Trump family’s crypto venture, World Liberty Financial, and its deal with crypto exchange Binance.
“I understand crypto. I understand the other issues here,” Lynch said. “But this is a mechanism by which other people outside, foreign interests can actually influence our president. Not just this one, but in the future as well.”
Meanwhile, Waters and other House Democrats gathered in a separate room with alternate witnesses, expressing their concerns about Trump’s conflicts of interest in the crypto industry.
The incident highlights the growing hurdles in passing crypto legislation in both chambers of Congress, with several crypto-friendly Senate Democrats recently pulling their support from a stablecoin bill.
Crypto legislation faces challenges as lawmakers struggle to balance regulation with industry interests, amid concerns over potential corruption and conflicts of interest involving high-profile figures like former President Trump.
