Senate Democrats set to introduce sweeping congressional stock trading ban
Gabe Kaminsky
Video Embed
EXCLUSIVE — Senate Democrats are set to unveil a sweeping proposal to ban members of Congress from trading in the stock market, according to a source involved with the effort and draft legislation obtained by the Washington Examiner.
The bill, dubbed the Ending Trading and Holdings in Congressional Stocks Act, would immediately prohibit lawmakers from buying or selling stocks. It would also require them and their spouses and dependents to divest from certain assets or place holdings into a “qualified blind trust,” a proposal that wouldn’t apply to lawmakers who were only recently elected this Congress until their next reelection.
The ETHICS Act’s introduction will come on the heels of a bipartisan swath of House members, including Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Matt Rosendale (R-MT), and Ken Buck (R-CO), putting forth legislation in March that would similarly prohibit lawmakers and their spouses from trading or owning stocks.
A source familiar with the situation told the Washington Examiner that the ETHICS Act will be unveiled outside the Capitol building on Tuesday morning by its leads — Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and John Fetterman (D-PA).
“This is the strongest and most well-thought out stock trading ban bill that anyone has introduced yet,” said the source, who is not authorized to speak publicly. “It’s long past overdue for Congress to end this corrupt practice and the ETHICS Act is the best way to do it. Maybe then Congress could slowly begin regaining all of the trust and faith it has lost with the public over the years.”
iFrame Object
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
This is a breaking news story. Follow along for any updates.