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Senate Democrats on Wednesday defeated two Republican led bills addressing congressional stock trading and data center related utility costs, ending a final legislative push before the Senate’s election recess. Democrats argued that both proposals were watered down and failed to impose meaningful restrictions.

The Ratepayer Protection Act failed 57 to 43, three votes short of the 60 needed to overcome the Senate filibuster. The Stop Insider Trading Act then fell on a party line vote of 53 to 47, also short of the required threshold.

Republicans are likely to use the votes during the fall campaign as the party tries to preserve narrow majorities in both chambers. The fight comes amid President Donald Trump’s falling approval ratings and continued voter concerns about affordability.

The Senate was expected to begin its recess as soon as Wednesday, allowing lawmakers seeking reelection to return home and campaign before the 2026 midterm election. The two votes handed candidates fresh material for disputes over electricity costs, congressional trading and election rules.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana quickly attacked Democrats after the stock trading vote. He said the bill provided “the accountability the American people demand. But every Democrat blocked it from becoming law.”

The Ratepayer Protection Act had cleared the House earlier this month by an overwhelming 417 to 3 vote. It would create a regulatory framework that states could consider adopting for large artificial intelligence data centers.

Under that framework, states could require those facilities to cover their own energy costs instead of passing the expense to utility customers. Democrats objected because adoption of the framework would remain optional rather than establishing a binding national requirement.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York called the data center proposal a “toothless messaging bill” during a Senate speech Tuesday. “The bill is a fraud. I can sum up the shortcomings of Republicans’ data center bill with one word: optional,” Schumer said.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts has called for a national moratorium on data centers until developers can show they will pay the full cost of construction and operation. She dismissed the legislation as a “silly piece of nonsense.”

“Give us something of substance and we’ll vote on it,” Warren said before Wednesday’s vote. Her criticism reflected the broader Democratic argument that the proposal offered political messaging without sufficiently strict requirements for developers.

Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, the top Democrat on the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, raised similar objections earlier this month. He blocked the bill after Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio requested unanimous consent for quick passage.

Husted is facing former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in a race rated a toss up by The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter. Brown has accused Husted of helping bring data centers to Ohio while Husted served as lieutenant governor.

Data centers have developed into a potent campaign issue in recent months as opponents press for stricter guardrails governing developers. Husted and other Republicans could use the failed Senate vote to reinforce their arguments on electricity costs and accountability.

The congressional stock trading measure had passed the House in July by a vote of 232 to 198. It would bar sitting members of Congress from buying individual stocks, but it would not require them to sell investments already held in their portfolios.

That omission became a major objection for Democrats who have advocated a more stringent trading prohibition. Republicans also added a controversial voter identification provision that Democrats largely oppose, tying the trading restrictions to a separate election policy fight.

Schumer called the stock trading proposal a “theatrical farce” and described the voter ID language as a “poison pill.” Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia likewise argued that the proposal amounted to a half measure rather than a serious stock ban.

“It’s obviously a sign that they don’t take seriously the issue of insider trading. If you wanted to get a stock ban done, you would put a stock ban on the floor,” Kaine said Wednesday.

Husted defended both measures as “commonsense, bipartisan bills” in a Tuesday post on X. “Lowering energy costs, requiring photo ID to vote, and banning stock trading for members of Congress could be bipartisan wins,” he wrote. “Senate Democrats are the only ones standing in the way of delivering what the American people have asked us to do.”

DISCLAIMER: GoldInvestors.news is not a registered investment, legal or tax advisor or broker/dealer. All investment/financial opinions expressed by GoldInvestors.news are from the personal research and experience of the owner of the site and are intended as educational material. Although best efforts are made to ensure that all information is accurate and up to date, occasionally unintended errors and misprints may occur.