U.S. Rep. French Hill, R-Little Rock, joined Talk Business & Politics D.C. Edition for a conversation on recent developments in the nation’s capital. Hill, chair of the House Financial Services Committee, was a leader on the cryptocurrency and digital assets legislation that cleared the House. One measure, the GENIUS Act, has been signed by President Trump, but two more House-approved bills must pass the Senate.
Hill indicated what will then happen once the Senate approves and the President signs, as expected.
“So once the CLARITY Act is passed in conjunction with the GENIUS Act that the president signed into law – the bank supervisors, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Commodity Future and Trading Commission (CFTC) – those three groups will write the rules to implement that law. So that’s what will give the final guidance to banks, security dealers, commodity dealers, individual entrepreneurs,” said Hill. “I think it will bring capital back to the U.S., bring coding and entrepreneurship back to the U.S., and I think it will put America in a leading position for financial technology.”
Trump has been announcing, negotiating, and reversing positions on tariffs with a multitude of countries for months. This past two weeks, there has been more activity.
Hill said he still has issues with the way Trump’s tariff policy is working.
“Using tariffs as a lever to get market access into other countries for U.S. goods and services, and try to lower both non-tariff barriers in those countries and maybe even lower punitive tariff levels like you might see in India, for example. I think that’s good,” he said. “What’s troubling to me is the lack of finding a landing place on these topics more quickly so that American business, particularly small businesses, can be certain about their supply chain, be certain about their prices as they think about budgeting for the next year, 2026. That’s what concerns me this week.”
He said next year – believe it or not – is the five-year anniversary of the USMCA deal between the U.S., Canada and Mexico. That agreement calls for a review and negotiation to update terms, and Hill expects those talks to have significant impact on Arkansas.
“I think China and USMCA are critical for U.S. manufacturing and for Arkansas trade. It’s more than a third of Arkansas [exports], the two-way trade with Canada and Mexico. Having our friends and allies have some trade confidence allows us to do a better job with a tougher situation like China,” said Hill.
The Second District Congressman also addressed the raging controversy with the Epstein files. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., dismissed Congress this week to delay potential votes on the issues while legal matters are being debated and the White House formulates its response.
Hill thinks the files will be released, but he is cautious about protecting grand jury testimony.
“I would say people want the files released as a general matter. They want transparency for the American people. They want trust in the judicial system,” he said. “But there are also some rules around what actually can be released as it relates to a federal judge sealing it or grand jury testimony.”
You can listen to his full interview at this link.