The increasing demands to ban stock trading for congressional lawmakers are gaining further momentum for the first time on Capitol Hill in a decade. This time Nancy Pelosi, who helped her husband accumulate riches through stocks, is also favoring the ban.
Bipartisan effort to ban stock trade initiates
According to the New York Times, the issue of banning stock trade for lawmakers is a complex one. The liberal news outlet indicated banning stock trade would raise further questions regarding which type of investments lawmakers could make.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi extended her support in banning the trading, but she also put forward her weird demand. Pelosi noted she would only agree to ban the trading for congressional members if this ban would also be extended to the US Supreme Court.
Thus, Pelosi suggested the ban should be “government wise,” as according to her, the Supreme Court makes extremely important decisions every day.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she would accept a ban on U.S. lawmakers trading stocks — if it also applies to judges, including Supreme Court justices. https://t.co/zBb7u7F5uM
— The New York Times (@nytimes) February 9, 2022
Likewise, House Majority Leader Rep. Steny H. Hoyer, who was against the ban initially, indicated his willingness to pursue the ban.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer was also quick to respond to calls of stock trade banning and encouraged lawmakers to pass a bill as soon as possible.
Members from both sides of the aisle extended their support for the stock trade ban, but some members are being more vocal than others.
Different proposals are currently circulating in both the House and the Senate. One of them was introduced this week by Democrat Senator Elizebeth Warren and Republican Senator Steve Daines.
Similarly, another proposal by Democrat Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Katie Porter also suggested banning individual stock trading for congressional lawmakers.
Many Democrat lawmakers made riches through stock trading in Congress
Amid the controversy created by Pelosi, not everyone is perceiving her comments nicely. Democrat Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger claimed these sorts of comments would only delay the process of stock trade banning.
She also expressed her opinion that any legislation of this type will defy the principles of separation of power; it could encourage courts to rule against Congress for their personal gains.
76 percent of Americans agree: it's time to ban stock trading by members of Congress.
— Ossoff's Office (@SenOssoff) February 7, 2022
The recent debate of stock trade ban for congressional lawmakers was initiated in 2020 when many lawmakers made headlines for trading healthcare stocks.
However, it only gained momentum recently when Nancy Pelosi’s husband came into the spotlight for creating riches through trading.
Similarly, Rep. Jamie Raskin was recently exposed for not disclosing the stock trading of his wife, who is also Biden’s top nominee for the Federal Reserve.
Another Democrat lawmaker, Tom Malinowski of New Jersey, too faced allegations last year for not disclosing his stock trading worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Republican lawmaker Chip Roy, who co-authored the stock trade ban legislation in 2020 with a Democratic counterpart, called it a “bipartisan problem.”
