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defrogThis story broke some time ago, but I missed it then, and in light of current events it’s worth raising now.
ITEM: Congresspersons and their staffers working on legislation and regulatory changes buy and sell stocks based on that information before it becomes public, and tend to do very well as a result.
When private citizens do this, it’s called “insider trading” and it’s illegal. When lawmakers and their employees do it, it’s completely legal.
Forbes reports:
Ironically – or perhaps not – Democrats tend to get better ROIs.
Why is this legal? Because, if it wasn’t, it might “insulate a legislator from the personal and economic interests that his/her constituency, or society in general, has in governmental decisions and policy.”
Source: The House ethics manual.
And Wall Street wonders what the #OWS people are so crabby about.
Call my broker,
This is dF
ITEM: Congresspersons and their staffers working on legislation and regulatory changes buy and sell stocks based on that information before it becomes public, and tend to do very well as a result.
When private citizens do this, it’s called “insider trading” and it’s illegal. When lawmakers and their employees do it, it’s completely legal.
Forbes reports:
… a study of some 16,000 stock transactions carried out by House members was published in the journal Business and Politics. This detailed analysis showed that the investment portfolios of House members beat the market by about six points a year.
Ironically – or perhaps not – Democrats tend to get better ROIs.
Why is this legal? Because, if it wasn’t, it might “insulate a legislator from the personal and economic interests that his/her constituency, or society in general, has in governmental decisions and policy.”
Source: The House ethics manual.
And Wall Street wonders what the #OWS people are so crabby about.
Call my broker,
This is dF
