Following a wave of market volatility triggered by President Donald Trump’s abrupt tariff announcements and reversals, Democratic lawmakers are intensifying calls for a federal ban on stock trading by members of Congress. The calls come amid fresh scrutiny of trades made by elected officials in the hours surrounding Trump’s tariff policy flip-flops and a Truth Social post that declared it was a “GREAT TIME TO BUY.”
The stock market initially fell after Trump announced sweeping tariffs on imports from dozens of countries. Days later, the former president posted online that investors should take advantage of the dip, only to announce shortly thereafter that the tariffs would be partially reversed, reducing rates to 10 percent for most countries. Markets rebounded following the reversal, prompting lawmakers to raise concerns about the potential for insider trading.
“Trump is creating giant market fluctuations with his on-again, off-again tariffs,” said Sen. Adam Schiff of California. “These constant gyrations in policy provide dangerous opportunities for insider trading.” In a post on social media, Schiff demanded to know: “Who in the administration knew about Trump’s latest tariff flip flop ahead of time? Did anyone buy or sell stocks, and profit at the public’s expense?”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York echoed those concerns and suggested lawmakers may have taken advantage of the market swings for personal gain. “Any member of Congress who purchased stocks in the last 48 hours should probably disclose that now,” she said. “I’ve been hearing some interesting chatter on the floor. Disclosure deadline is May 15th. We’re about to learn a few things. It’s time to ban insider trading in Congress.”
One of the most prominent examples emerged from public disclosures revealing that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia purchased between $21,000 and $315,000 worth of stock on April 8 and 9. Her trades included shares in Tesla, Palantir, Apple, and Amazon. She also sold between $50,000 and $100,000 in U.S. Treasury securities on April 8, just before Trump’s post and the subsequent market rebound. Speaking to reporters afterward, Greene distanced herself from the decisions. “I don’t place my buys myself,” she said. “That’s something that my portfolio manager does for me, and he did a great job. Guess what he did? He bought the dip.”
In response, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries voiced strong support for banning congressional stock trading during an interview with MSNBC host Jen Psaki. “We do need to change the law so that sitting members of Congress cannot trade stock, period. Full stop,” Jeffries said. Referring to Greene’s activity, he added, “We are seeing corruption unfold before us in real time,” and described her as “exhibit A.”
While Jeffries stopped short of endorsing the specific legislation proposed earlier this year by Ocasio-Cortez and others to ban both trading and ownership of individual stocks, his comments mark a significant departure from former Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s earlier skepticism about the need for such restrictions. Pelosi, who previously resisted an outright ban, later said she was “okay with it” if the caucus supported one. A spokesperson for Pelosi responded to renewed criticism by stating, “Speaker Pelosi does not own any stocks, and she has no prior knowledge or subsequent involvement in any transactions.”
Rep. Seth Magaziner of Rhode Island, a co-author of one of several bipartisan bills aimed at ending member trading of individual stocks, said Democrats are ready to act. “I would say if the Republicans want to insulate themselves from a political fallout of this issue, then the best thing that they could do is bring the bill to the floor before and let us have a vote,” he said. “They have total control of government. The ball is in their court.”
Magaziner’s legislation, co-sponsored with Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, would require lawmakers to divest their individual holdings or place them into a blind trust. “If Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune do not allow this to come to the floor for an up-or-down vote,” Magaziner added, “then they own that decision, and they will certainly pay for it in the midterms.”
Recent polling circulated among Democrats shows broad public support for banning congressional stock trading, especially in battleground districts. Party strategists are already comparing the current ethics push to the 2006 and 2018 midterm elections, when Democrats capitalized on corruption scandals and broader dissatisfaction with Republican leadership to win significant gains in the House.
Republicans, meanwhile, have attempted to deflect the attention, pointing to past scrutiny over trades by Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi. “It’s rich for national Democrats to suddenly care about stock trading when their real leader Nancy Pelosi is making traders on Wall Street look like amateurs at a penny arcade,” said National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Mike Marinella.
Still, some Republican lawmakers have joined the reform push. “No one should benefit from information gleaned in their capacity as a member of Congress,” said Rep. Mike Lawler of New York, a sponsor of one of the trading ban proposals. “I’m glad Leader Jeffries is finally on board with this legislation after years of Democratic leaders like Nancy Pelosi benefitting from prolific stock trading.”
Under the 2012 STOCK Act, lawmakers are already required to report trades over $1,000 within 45 days. But both parties have seen members fail to comply with reporting rules, and the current law has done little to prevent perceptions of conflicts of interest or actual unethical behavior. As of this week, no senators have yet reported transactions covering the period of Trump’s tariff announcements and reversals.
At a press conference Tuesday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for an investigation into potential insider trading tied to the tariff chaos. “I have asked that there be a full investigation of insider trading of people who knew before Donald Trump announced he was going to do a cutback on tariffs who invested those stocks and made money illegally,” Schumer told reporters.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that Trump “would be interested in looking at” stock trading ban proposals, though the administration has not endorsed any specific legislation. Speaker Mike Johnson’s office has not responded to requests for comment.
While Democrats currently lack the committee gavels necessary to force inquiries, their renewed push for accountability signals that stock trading by lawmakers is set to be a key issue in the 2026 election cycle. Whether legislative action follows remains to be seen.
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