Stock Trading Ban for Members of Congress

Floor Speech

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Mr. DELUZIO. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the leadership from the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Magaziner) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy) for bringing us together tonight.

Mr. Speaker, imagine that, Democrats and Republicans in this Chamber, in this town, wanting to do something about corruption. That is a good thing. I hope the American people are paying attention.

I will tell you it is clear from conversations with my constituents in western Pennsylvania, and I know from people all over this country, they think our system is rigged: rigged against hardworking people, rigged for giant corporations and the rich and the powerful. That kind of corporate power doesn't just happen. It is enabled by pliable politicians and by a Supreme Court that opens the floodgates to unlimited super-PAC money that corrupts our elections.

We should fight that. If you want to fight corruption, let's start with getting that unlimited corporate money out of our politics.

You have to have some credibility and this Chamber, this town, this Congress, needs more credibility. One way to build that back is to start with banning congressional stock trading. I think it is an easy place to start. You talk to people in western Pennsylvania, you talk to people all over this country who think it is ridiculous that folks in power and elected office get rich off the inside and sensitive information that we learn in our jobs serving the people, representing the people who elect us.

No one should be using that information to enrich themselves, to get rich off of public trust. I am proud to be here in a bipartisan fashion, joining with Members of both parties who support this commonsense, anticorruption idea.

Let's ban congressional stock trading. Wherever we see corruption, we should be calling it out. We should be fighting it. We should take it on. Our democracy turns on public trust and people having some faith in their elected Representatives.

What we are railing against here, Members trading stock based on information we learn, that erodes that public trust. Let's be smart. Let's come together. Let's call out this corruption for what it is.

I again commend the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Magaziner) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy) for bringing us together.

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