A U.S. Senate panel is scheduled to vote Wednesday on a bill introduced by Senator Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) that would prohibit members of Congress from trading stocks while in office. The initiative, presented as a measure to strengthen ethics and reduce potential conflicts of interest, has generated increasing debate in both legislative chambers.
In a conversation with reporters today, Hawley stated that
the proposal has significant support among Republican lawmakers and even some
Democrats, which could facilitate its passage in a politically polarized
Congress. The senator also noted that Speaker of the House Mike Johnson
(R-Louisiana) has expressed his explicit support for the measure.
According to Hawley, Johnson even told him that President
Donald Trump supported the original version of the bill, formally known as the
Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments Act
(PELOSI)—a name chosen as a political critique, referring to former Speaker of
the House Nancy Pelosi, whose family has been the subject of media scrutiny for
its financial investments.
The bill comes amid growing public pressure to limit or more
strictly regulate lawmakers' involvement in stock market activities, especially
after multiple controversies surrounding potential insider trading by officials
with access to privileged information. This week's vote could determine the
fate of one of the most talked-about ethics reform proposals of the year and
open the door to a major overhaul of the financial rules governing the behavior
of elected officials.
