Despite Broad Public Support, Some Lawmakers, Barriers Remain To Ban Congressional Stock Trades
“It’s pretty simple: when Members — or senior staff — have access to classified information, we should not be trading in the stock market on it,” Rep Ocasio-Cortez says
It's the rare issue on which Democrats, Republicans and independents can agree — and several lawmakers have gotten behind legislation to effectively deal with that issue — and yet passing that legislation and successfully resolving the matter seems so difficult.
The issue is that of the ability and legality of sitting members of Congress to be able to trade in individual stocks.
Rep Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-NY) is among that handful of lawmakers seeking to ban the practice.
“It’s pretty simple: when Members — or senior staff — have access to classified information, we should not be trading in the stock market on it. The Ban Conflicted Trading Act has bipartisan and bicameral support. It’s time to pass it,” she tweeted.
Big majorities of the American people are in the same corner, according to public opinion polling.
Some 63 percent of all voters say that lawmakers should be banned from stock trading. A majority of Democratic and Republican voters back a ban, at 69 percent and 58 percent, respectively.
Independent voters are also in favor of a ban on stock trades for members of Congress, splitting the difference at 64 percent.
Support for a ban on stock trading among lawmakers’ families also enjoys majority support, with 57 percent of all voters backing such a measure. Some 59 percent of Democrats and 54 percent of GOP voters support that policy.
Sen Jeff Merkley (D-Ore) is fighting for the measure in the Senate.
Ocasio-Cortez, Merkley and other backers held a call with the press on the bill Thursday.
Opposition among some colleagues is pronounced — and noisy.
Such has been the case of Sen Tommy Tuberville, the Republican junior senator from Alabama.
Tuberville made news this week by saying, when asked about the Ban Conflicted Trading Act, said pointedly, "I think it's ridiculous. They might as well start sending robots up here.”
“I think it would really cut back on the amount of people that would want to come up here and serve,” he added.
Tuberville is one of the worst violators of the stock-trade regulations which already are on the books for Congress, breaking them 132 times, with transactions totaling at least $894,000.
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