President Joe Biden has announced his support for banning sitting members of Congress from trading stocks — an eleventh-hour pivot after four years of silence on the controversy.
“No one should be able to make money in the stock market while being in Congress,” Biden told the “More Perfect Union” podcast.
“I don’t know how you look your voters in the eye and know that they have given you an internal path to making more money because of the work they have done for you,” Biden said. He further said, “I think we should change the law. ,
The interview was conducted by Faiz Shakir, political advisor to Senator Bernie Sanders, and published by A More Perfect Union, a pro-labor advocacy and journalism organization.
It’s unclear what impact Biden’s statement, coming just a month before his term ends, could have.
Biden had previously refused to take a position on stock trading in Congress.
His fellow Democrat, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, initially opposed the proposals that lawmakers and their spouses Trading of shares was banned.
Pelosi, who is married to venture capitalist Paul Pelosi, stressed that her husband trades stocks independently and has no involvement. He said in December 2021 that there is a “free market” in which members of Congress “should be able to participate.”
Speculation about Pelosi’s future in Congress has intensified in recent days after the 84-year-old congresswoman from San Francisco. Hip replacement surgery performed in Europe Earlier this week.
pelosi Fell during trip to Luxembourg on weekends, break her hips,
Financial disclosure forms revealed that Paul Pelosi, Whose value is said to be more than 275 million dollarsSold 2,000 shares of Visa stock is worth between $500,000 and $1 million On 1 July. In September, the Justice Department announced it was suing Visa for alleged antitrust violations.
Pelosi has softened since 2021 His stance amid the reactionAn existing law is coming out in support of the Strengthening the Stock Act, which requires lawmakers to disclose their stock sales and purchases.
He has also called for increasing stock trading disclosure requirements for members of the Judiciary while toughening penalties for members of Congress who violate the rules.
Biden and Pelosi’s relationship was once close It is said that they are broken The former speaker was instrumental in getting the President out of the race earlier this year over concerns over his age and mental acuity.
Pelosi told news outlets that His intention was to start a quick primary process for the Democrats. Following Biden’s decision to step aside, But his quick support of Vice President Kamala Harris Those plans failed.
Biden’s support for the ban marks somewhat of a pivot for the president, who has been largely non-committal on the issue.
When Jen Psaki served as White House press secretary two years ago, she said Biden would “let members of the leadership in Congress and members of Congress determine what the rules should be.”
A bipartisan proposal to ban the trade by members of Congress and their families has dozens of sponsors, but it has not received a vote.
Although lawmakers are required to disclose stock transactions over $1,000, they routinely delay filing the notices and sometimes don’t file them at all.
Shakir said he admired Biden for not “rushing into Google, and Boeing, and Microsoft, and Nvidia, and, you know, Amazon” while he was a U.S. senator from Delaware, this term. But he stayed for 36 years.
Biden said he would rather live on his senatorial salary than play the stock market.
Trading in Congress has long been criticized by government watchdogs, who say access to non-public information creates a temptation for lawmakers to prioritize their own finances over the public good.
Public anger has grown since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, when some lawmakers were caught buying and selling millions of dollars’ worth of stocks after warnings were raised about the disruption the virus could bring.
with post wire
