Elected officials curiously accumulate wealth while in office that cannot be explained by their salaries or the assets they brought with them before being elected.
Concerns about insider trading, which is illegal for almost all except for politicians, have led to concerns that not only are individuals getting rich inappropriately, but that in many cases they are doing so in ways which may harm the public interest.
A Business Insider study in January found that a bipartisan group of 78 members senators and representatives recently failed to properly report their financial trades as mandated by the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012, also known as the STOCK Act.
A Global Times review states that “Even as the US economy stumbles due to inflation and regulatory burdens, American lawmakers can’t help but get caught in shady stock market deals. Just last week, a Democrat representative from Massachusetts violated a 2012 law that merely requires members of Congress to report their stock trades in a timely manner. According to Business Insider, Bill Keating traded up to $15,000 worth of shares of one budget clothing chain for another but reported it after the 45-day deadline mandated by the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act, a 2012 bill intended to curb unethical market behavior. Keating’s office said the trades were made by an investment firm and that the House Ethics Committee forgave the transgression since the delay was within their grace period. The congressman didn’t even have to pay a $200 fine, and odds heavily favor his re-election in the midterms. Two other Massachusetts Democrats in the House have also violated the STOCK Act, according to Business Insider. In fact, a total of 73 lawmakers have, since the outlet started tracking their transgressions in 2021.”
A New York Times articles states that “97 lawmakers or their family members bought or sold financial assets over a three-year span in industries that could be affected by their legislative committee work… The timing of one trade by the wife of Representative Alan Lowenthal, Democrat of California, was especially striking: His disclosure statement said she had sold Boeing shares on March 5, 2020 — one day before a House committee on which he sits released damaging findings on the company’s handling of its 737 Max jet, which was involved in two fatal crashes.”
On January 24, Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) reintroduced legislation banning lawmakers from stock trading. The Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments (PELOSI) Act would prohibit members of Congress and their spouses from holding or trading individual stocks. The bill will require members found in violation to return their profits to American taxpayers. Specifically, The PELOSI Act would give members and their spouses six months after first assuming office to divest any holdings or put them in a blind trust. Any members found in violation of the bill would have to ‘return their profits to American taxpayers.
According to Senator Hawley, “For too long, politicians in Washington have taken advantage of the economic system they write the rules for, turning profits for themselves at the expense of the American people. As members of Congress, both Senators and Representatives are tasked with providing oversight of the same companies they invest in, yet they continually buy and sell stocks, outperforming the market time and again. While Wall Street and Big Tech work hand-in-hand with elected officials to enrich each other, hardworking Americans pay the price. The solution is clear: we must immediately and permanently ban all members of Congress from trading stocks.”
The name of the bill after the former House Speaker Nancy Speaker reflects questions about the wealth she gained in office. A Free Beacon report revealed that she and her husband sold up to $3 million in shares of Google, just before the Justice Department launched an antitruct probe.
Illustration: Pixabay