Should members of Congress and their families be prohibited from trading stock?

[msc545]

Of course, they will just get someone else to do it for them, but still...

Updates

1 y

These people get rich or richer in office by engaging in insider trading based on their own decisions affecting public companies.

[VIVANT]

OF COURSE make it illegal retroactively & put these shit heads in jail for once. Of all the grimy underhanded things they do make them accountable for something traceable. Incredible they try to waste our time pretending this his even something that needs to be debated ffs 🤦🏻‍♀️

“Should we allow our elected officials to be corrupt gangsters” 🤔 hard think

🤡

[Chazmatazz269]

Yes, and put in prison for doing so. If they get someone else to do it, put THAT person in prison and execute the former official, publicly.

[exitseven]

There should be rules against it. In the outside world it is called Conflict of Interest.

[exitseven]

Thanks for the MHO😎

[DCooper]

I'm with you on this one. When they enter office, any investments ought to go into a blind trust.

[AimeeKyle]

Absolutely…. Insider trading is illegal for everyone else. When they make laws, change policies or invest our (government) money in specific industries, it affects stock or futures values….

[goaded]

Yes, it's often insider trading or a conflict of interest.

[WindAtMyBack]

I don't see any reason why they should be prevented from trading stocks. If you are worried about insider trading, that's already illegal. It can be hard to prove, but it's already illegal. Besides, most of what goes on in Congress is public. If it's publicly available information, then by definition it's not insider trading.

[msc545]

The fact that it is illegal doesn't keep people from doing it, and certainly not members of congress from doing it. They are mostly impervious to law enforcement by the feds. It is only public information AFTER they take action for or against the company, so they have lots of time to buy or sell as indicated. They probably use others to actually do the transactions.

[WindAtMyBack]

It's public information long before it is finalized.

Besides, the large majority of companies don't do any business with the feds. Realistically I'd say it's a pretty minor issue.

[msc545]

Unfortunately not minor at all.

[WindAtMyBack]

I disagree. If insider trading by Congress members has any affect on the market, it's very minor.

You think it's not minor at all. Then I assume you can give an example of how it affected the market in any significant way.

[msc545]

I can't tell what the market would be like without insider trading, because it has never been that way.

[msc545]

Maybe we should try it.

[WindAtMyBack]

You say it's not minor. Then you say you don't know what the market would be like without inside trading. So which is it? You are simultaneously saying you know and don't know.

The market is determined by shareholders, of which Congress members are a minor component.

[msc545]

I determine it indirectly by the amount of corruption that DOES get publicity.

[WindAtMyBack]

Actually the US is one of the least corrupt countries in the world. But that's irrelevant to the fact that Congress members trading stocks has very little affect on the stock market. They are small fries compared to the overall market.

[msc545]

How do you know this or is that just your opinion?

[WindAtMyBack]

Which part? For the corruption part, that's what various surveys and studies show.

For Congress being small fries, it's a simple matter of numbers. The largest and most influential shareholders are pooled money like mutual funds, retirement plans etc. If you look up the ownership of stocks, you'll see that this is the case. Just randomly think of large companies and look up the ownership. I don't know how much Congress members have in the stock market, but it can't be significant. The numbers don't add up.

The total market value of US public stocks is something like 50 trillion dollars. Just how significant do you think a hand full of Congress members can be in a market that large?

[msc545]

It is not zero

[maximumpower]

YES!! By all means.
Ever notice how even those who aren't millionaires when they take office seem to get there really quickly after doing so?
There JUST might be a reason for that.

[CaptainSmartass]

Yes, they should. Although, I feel that nobody should be gambling on the stock market, full stop.

Simples...

[NathanDavis]

why would they vote to inflict damage on themselves lmao... they're not that stupid

[SnowedIn]

I'd support that.