There are now two timelines at war. First, the Senate’s own calendar is notoriously difficult to negotiate, and any contentious bill requires days of debate. Every passing hour narrows the legislation’s chances, as there are only seven days left before recess, when senators will leave Washington and largely shift their attention to the ensuing midterm elections looming above them.
The other time crisis has been the time ticking away at the negotiating table, where the two parties and the White House are still working to gather the necessary 60 votes. His final effort must win over many holdout Democrats and a few reluctant Republicans.
Crypto lobbyists fervently hope that negotiators, especially Tillis and Gallego, can find a workable middle ground, circulate the reformed bill again, and see it advance through the Senate voting process. At this point, Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s prediction remains solid: The bill almost certainly does not have enough time to finish the Senate’s multi-stage process before the break.
But if he were to start and potentially clear the initial 60-vote hurdle before the end of next week, that could be enough to put him on track for victory. To give that possibility its best chance, the industry would like to see Thune make the first motion before the end of the week on what is called “cloture,” the procedure that prepares a bill for a vote.
