On Tuesday, Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri kicked off the fight against Congressional corruption by introducing legislation that would forbid members of Congress and their family members from trading individual stocks.
To effect such an outcome, the bill would require that both members of Congress and their spouses move any individual stocks they own into blind trusts where they won’t be able to trade them. Under the bill, members of Congress and family members of Congress would, if they don’t put the individual stocks in the trust, lose those stocks to the US Treasury.
Hilariously, Sen. Hawley named the bill the PELOSI ACt, doing so by giving it the title “Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments” Act. The name makes sense, as much of the outrage over Congressional stock trading came thanks to the stock trading done by Pelosi’s husband in 2021 and 2022.
Fox News Digital, reporting on the Pelosi stock trade that sparked the outrage, said “The bill comes after revelations last year that Nancy’s husband, Paul Pelosi, traded between $1 million and $5 million of stocks for semiconductors just days before Congress allocated $52 million to the industry. The stocks were later sold at a loss to remove the appearance of impropriety.”
Pelosi, however, isn’t the only one to try and profit from insider Congressional knowledge. Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, for example, did so as well, selling investments after receiving Covid briefings.
Sen. Hawley, discussing the bill and its importance in a statement, said “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.”
Continuing, Hawley went on to say “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.”
"*" indicates required fields
Further, he added that “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.”