The U.S. Senate came close to passing long-awaited stablecoin legislation this week — but ultimately, politics prevailed over policy.
The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act), was blocked on the floor in a 48–49 cloture vote. Though the vote was a procedural step to allow for debate, and potentially a quick floor vote thereafter, this sudden roadblock sent a loud message: a widely negotiated legislation on stablecoins is not immune to broader partisan tensions.
In particular, it appears that Democrats have had enough of President Trump adding billions of dollars to his net worth riding the coattails of crypto momentum in Congress. Ahead of the vote, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) declared, “Republicans in the Senate will try to jam Democrats by forcing a vote on a crypto bill that will help Donald Trump make hundreds of millions, maybe billions of dollars through his crypto corruption.”
Nervous Palms Before the Vote
In the day preceding the pivotal May 8 cloture vote on the GENIUS Act (S.1582), tension in the Senate was high as leadership negotiated behind closed doors. The bill, sponsored by Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN), aimed to provide the first federal framework for regulating payment stablecoins — digital assets pegged to the value of the U.S. dollar. In the 10+ years since their inception, stablecoins have grown to become a $242 billion industry and the lifeblood of the entire crypto ecosystem.
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The co-sponsors of the bill included a broad bipartisan coalition including Senators Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD).
Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), a longtime advocate for crypto policy and the chair of the Digital Asset Subcommittee, framed the legislation as a turning point for American digital asset leadership. “American innovation has faced a challenging environment,” she said on the floor before the vote. “This week, we have the opportunity to start to change that, and we must grab the reins and ensure that all Americans are able to take charge of their financial future.”
Hagerty then spoke and warned his Democratic colleagues what a ‘no’ vote today would mean. “I look forward to working with my colleagues should they choose to move forward on this bill. And if they don’t, I want the American public, and I want everybody watching today, to understand that this is a vote to kill the crypto industry here in America, and it’s a shame this is our first opportunity to … deliver groundbreaking legislation.”
Freshman Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Ranking Member of the Senate Digital Assets Subcommittee, pushed back on that framing. “This isn’t about killing the bill — it’s about doing it right,” he said. Gallego argued that lawmakers needed more time. The bill has been in negotiations behind closed doors for the last 48 hours, as last Saturday, May 3, Gallego and eight other Senators issued a statement highlighting requests to improve the bill, including stronger provisions on anti-money laundering, foreign issuers, national security, preserving the safety and soundness of our financial system, and accountability for noncompliance.
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Gallego made a motion to combine Thursday’s vote with a second vote on Monday. “This still has a pathway to be a bipartisan win for the country,” Gallego insisted. However, Lummis denied the motion and the Republicans chose to move forward with the vote despite Democratic requests for more time.
The Vote and What It Meant
At 1:45 p.m., the Senate proceeded to vote on cloture — the motion to end debate on the motion to proceed with the bill. While often misunderstood, a vote for cloture in this case was simply a vote to begin debating the legislation, not to pass it.
Initially, the count stood at 49–48 in favor of cloture. But, Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-SD) switched his vote to “No,” changing the final tally to 48–49. All Democrats voted no on the measure, showing a unified front. Majority Leader Thune changed his vote for a parliamentary reason to have the option to bring the GENIUS Act back for consideration should Democrats reconsider. This leaves the possibility that if the two sides can come back to the table on stablecoins, Thune could ask for another cloture vote.
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Only two other Republicans voted no, including Senators Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Paul Rand (R-KY). Hawley said he needs prohibitions against “Big Tech” ownership of stablecoins, saying, “We’ve been working with negotiators for 48 hours now, and I was told that they were getting close to text to include Big Tech prohibitions… But they haven’t done it.”
Fallout and Finger-Pointing
After the vote, Sen. Thune made clear that he felt Republicans had honored the bipartisan process and that Democrats were walking away from legislation they once supported. “This has nothing to do with the substance of the bill,” he said on the floor. “It’s politics.”
Sen. Scott was even more direct: “This is a vote against President Trump’s legislative agenda,” he said. “Trump Derangement Syndrome has hijacked responsible governance in this chamber.” Sen. Scott added that failure to proceed with the bill would continue to send crypto innovation offshore. “This was our first opportunity to lead in digital assets … and we blew it.”
Sen. Gallego issued a statement on his ‘no’ vote, stating, “I went to the floor and asked for more time to negotiate, without delaying the bill’s timeline for final passage. Republicans refused. Without more time to at least finish the bill text, there was no true bipartisan path forward … America must lead in this space and consumers deserve to be protected.”
What’s Next for a Stablecoin Bill?
For now, the path forward for stablecoin legislation remains uncertain. The strategic vote switch by Sen. Thune preserved the option to revisit cloture, but it’s unclear how Democrats will re-engage on stablecoin legislation. Several Republican senators, including Sen. Scott and Sen. Hagerty, insist they remain committed to bipartisan talks. However, after this high-profile stall, the GENIUS Act faces a tougher climb.
The broader takeaway? Stablecoin legislation didn’t just stall — it hit a political firewall. Even with compromise baked into its text, the bill became collateral in a larger fight over Trump’s imprint on digital asset policy. Whether that roadblock is temporary or permanent will depend on how — and if — both sides return to the table.
