It’s no secret that people in both parties strongly support banning members of Congress from trading stocks. This belief comes from a desire for honesty and a rejection of the idea that elected officials should profit from their positions. Over the years, efforts to pass such a ban have been backed by a wide range of politicians, from progressive Democrats to conservative Republicans. Trump even called this “draining the swamp” when going for his election.
Still, even with this broad support, attempts to turn the idea into law have repeatedly failed to make it to a full vote in Congress. The current law, called the STOCK Act of 2012, was passed after it was revealed that lawmakers had made money using non-public information during major national events. According to MSNBC, this would be something like the 2008 financial crisis.
