The corruption of the political elite is well known.
The Republican Party has long struggled with corporate corruption and lobbyists; the Democrat Party is basically a money laundering operation for unions and leftist special interest groups.
Nonetheless, you rarely hear politicians speak out about it, at least not in ways that are specific and demand detailed action.
Though one Democratic Virginia congresswoman is breaking the mold, blowing the whistle on the rot that’s corrupting her party and the country.
She’s also put a name to a big part of the problem happening in the House and its corruption: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Congresswoman Calls Out Pelosi
Representative Abigail Spanberger served two terms for Virginia in the House; she’s hoping to get reelected next month in the midterms.
Though it’s not going to be an easy race. She wants to make a mark and show voters she’s serious about her role in standing up for constituents.
Part of that is combating the kind of awful corruption going on with insider trading. There’s legislation up before the House, but the recess will ensure it doesn’t come up and Spanberger is frustrated.
She says the problem is House leadership, which obviously means Pelosi.
This bill, Combating Financial Conflicts of Interest, stops politicians from doing transactions on the stock market, which has become a worse and worse problem for many members of Congress.
Pelosi’s drunk driving husband, Paul Pelosi, was accused of inside trades in the semiconductor sector, whose big factories Nancy made sure to visit on her recent trip to Taiwan.
Now, this bill won’t be going through; government honesty will once again be taking a back seat as less powerful members like Spanberger sigh in frustration and face tough races as part of such a corrupt party.
Democrats and Republicans must work together to improve our budget procedures — because families in Virginia and across our country deserve the peace of mind that their lawmakers will protect their jobs, livelihoods, and access to government services. (3/3)
— Rep. Abigail Spanberger (@RepSpanberger) September 30, 2022
What Would the Bill Cover?
The bill would cover stock investing, crypto, and other speculation. It would apply to those in Congress and their families, as well as judges and federal court staff. It would also apply to the Federal Reserve and those working for or associated with it.
As of yesterday, Congress is on recess until after the midterms; as Spanberger says, this “failure” of the House to act is disappointing.
Instead of actually doing something about insider trading, Spanberger says House leadership (read: Pelosi) just wants to “string” folks along and try to dodge public anger.
Pelosi denied trying to stonewall the bill and says a lack of political will is what’s stalling it.
Spanberger says the House Administration Committee watered down the bill, filling it with tons of junk to kneecap it, making sure it went nowhere when brought up previously so it can now be stalled further.
TL;DR: House leadership has failed to hold a vote to ban Members of Congress from trading stocks.
For months, bipartisan momentum grew in both the U.S. House and U.S. Senate to finally take a step towards prohibiting Members of Congress from day trading while on the job. (1/9)
— Rep. Abigail Spanberger (@RepSpanberger) September 30, 2022
The Bottom Line
The Democrat Party should be grateful for principled members like Spanberger. Instead, they run the clock out on honest members like her and humiliate Americans by protecting insider trading and corruption at the highest levels.
This article appeared in StatesmanPost and has been published here with permission.
