Team member AOC teams up with unlikely group – GOPs Gaetz and Fitzpatrick – on account for BAN stock trading by members of Congress
- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Matt Gaetz have often sparred over the years, with the forward-thinking firefighter calling him a “bad haircut in a cheap suit”
- The pair and a mix of House members came together on Tuesday to introduce the Restoring Faith in Government Act
- “If members have access to classified information, we shouldn’t be trading it on the stock exchange. It really is that simple,” said Ocasio-Cortez
A rare mix of House members from across the ideological spectrum is reintroducing legislation to ban stock trading this Congress.
Pennsylvania moderate Republican Brian Fitzpatrick, co-chair of the Problem Solvers’ Caucus, along with Florida Republican Matt Gaetz, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, DN.Y., and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Calif., introduced the Restoring Faith in Government Act on Tuesday to prohibit financial investments by members of Congress, spouses and dependents.
“The fact that members of the Progressive Caucus, the Freedom Caucus and the Bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, which represent the entire political spectrum, can reach agreement on important issues like these should send a strong message to America,” Fitzpatrick said in a statement. statement on the bill.
Ocasio-Cortez added, “If members have access to classified information, we shouldn’t trade on it in the stock market. It’s that simple.’
“If members have access to classified information, we shouldn’t be trading it on the stock exchange. It really is that simple,” Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Tuesday at the introduction of the Restore Faith in Government Act
“Members of Congress spend their time trading futures rather than securing the futures of our fellow Americans. We cannot allow the swamp to prioritize investing in stocks over investing in our country,” Gaetz said of the new bill.
Gaetz and Ocasio-Cortez have often sparred over the years, with the progressive firefighter calling the Florida Republican a “bad haircut in a cheap suit” when Gaetz said Rep. Jamie Raskin may not be able to perform his job due to the grief of losing his son. to suicide.
“Members of Congress spend their time trading futures rather than securing the futures of our fellow Americans. We cannot allow the swamp to prioritize investing in stocks over investing in our country,” Gaetz said of the new bill.
Public momentum for a stock trading ban came to a head last congress after ex-speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband made a number of questionable high-value trades.
A stock trading ban has drawn bipartisan support — and silent opposition — from both parties in both chambers.
“The dirty secret here is members of Congress hate this, they hate this bill,” Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., who introduced another ban earlier this year, told DailyMail.com.
Last July, Paul unscrupulously bought $5 million worth of semiconductor chips, days before a House vote that handed $52 billion to semiconductor makers. He sold the shares at a loss to avoid “misinformation” – or the appearance of a conflict of interest.
Pennsylvania Republican Brian Fitzpatrick, co-chair of the Problem Solvers’ Caucus, said the bill would ban financial investments by members of Congress, spouses and dependents.
Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-California. also supported the bill that comes after ex-speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband made some questionable high-value deals
In September, Pelosi backed a bill to ban trading in congressional stocks, which some government reform advocates said did not go far enough. She and other Democratic leaders failed to introduce a ban for a vote on the House floor.
According to a September New York Times report, nearly 100 members of the House of Representatives bought or sold financial assets related to the work of the committees they serve on.
Of the 435 House members, 183 traded stocks through themselves or their close relatives from 2019 to 2021. At least 97 bought or sold stocks, bonds or other financial assets through themselves or their spouses that intersected directly with their congressional work.
The trades that cross committee work are split evenly along partisan lines — 49 Republicans and 48 Democrats.
Since 2012, members of Congress have been bound by the STOCK Act, which requires them to report stock transactions of $1,000 or more by themselves or their family members within 45 days. Members of Congress are also believed to be restricted by insider trading laws.