Charles Hoskinson, founder of Cardano, warned that U.S. cryptocurrency regulation is becoming increasingly partisan and said Democrats are likely to oppose the CLARITY Act because crypto is being tied politically to Donald Trump.

Hoskinson said he has raised the concern for more than a year and now believes the opportunity for bipartisan crypto policy in the United States is narrowing quickly. In a post on X, he wrote that the emerging 2026 political message is “Crypto = Trump = Corruption,” adding that the left is expected to fall in line and vote against crypto-related bills.

Hoskinson’s View on the CLARITY Act

The CLARITY Act is a market-structure proposal intended to establish when a digital asset should be treated as a security and when it should be treated as a commodity. The bill would divide oversight between the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The legislation advanced through the House Agriculture Committee and the House Financial Services Committee in 2025, clearing early procedural hurdles but still requiring a full floor vote and Senate passage to become law.

Supporters see the measure as a basic legal framework the digital asset industry has sought for years. Critics have argued that some current versions could preserve too much SEC discretion and effectively require new projects to begin as securities by default.

As predicted, the 2026 talking points are Crypto = Trump = Corruption and thus the left is expected to fall in line and vote against all Crypto bills. I've said this for over a year in my interviews and also it was one of the reasons I said David Sachs should resign. The process… — Charles Hoskinson (@IOHK_Charles) July 23, 2026

Hoskinson said the political rollout of the legislation was mishandled. He specifically criticized David Sacks, the White House AI and crypto adviser appointed by Trump, over that process. His argument was not limited to one person, however. Hoskinson said the messaging and timing allowed the legislation to become associated with Trump-era politics and a White House-linked crypto narrative, weakening bipartisan trust.

“No progress can be made if crypto is partisan,” Hoskinson stated. He argued that once lawmakers treat crypto as part of a culture-war divide, compromise becomes more difficult and legislation can either stall or be diluted.

Implications for Cardano and the Crypto Industry

Hoskinson’s warning extends beyond a single bill. He said the industry could lose its chance to secure a stable U.S. regulatory framework if both major parties continue using crypto as a political signal. The concern comes at a time when other major crypto legislation, including the GENIUS Act on stablecoin regulation, has moved through Congress, showing that some bipartisan pathways remain even as market-structure bills face a more polarized environment.

According to the Cardano founder, earlier crypto policy debates had more cross-party participation. He said the post-FTX environment and the controversy around a Trump-linked meme coin have made crypto appear politically toxic to Democrats.

The practical concern, he argued, is that the political shift could affect not only established assets and ecosystems such as Cardano and XRP, but also future projects that need a clear pathway to launch in the United States. Without the CLARITY Act, new projects would continue to face regulatory uncertainty and would be unable to operate confidently if the legal framework remains unclear. Jurisdictions such as the European Union and the United Kingdom have already implemented or are advancing comprehensive crypto frameworks, potentially drawing developers and capital away from the U.S. market.

Hoskinson has made similar comments for more than a year, saying in multiple interviews that the process was mismanaged and helped create the current political framing. He now says the 2026 election cycle is turning crypto into a partisan weapon.

The Cardano founder urged the industry to recognize the risk. In his view, once crypto becomes a partisan issue, meaningful regulatory progress becomes difficult because lawmakers may vote according to party loyalty rather than the substance of policy.

Hoskinson said the CLARITY Act risks becoming a political football instead of a practical regulatory solution. He also said the industry had a window to act, but that window is closing. If Democrats block the CLARITY Act, he argued, the United States will fall further behind other countries in providing clear rules for crypto.

The source article also noted that Hoskinson has publicly denied rumors that he left or retired from Cardano, saying he remains committed to the project, although he has stepped back from some public-facing activities.

Source: https://captainaltcoin.com/cardanos-founder-warns-democrats-will-kill-clarity-act-crypto-is-now-partisan/