Ever wonder how it is that many members of Congress leave their offices much richer than when they began their terms? Unlike the 99% of Americans who must abide by the rules of the game or be held accountable, Steve Kroft reports that members of Congress can legally trade stock (or other assets) based upon non-public information obtained on Capitol Hill.
We "average" Americans can be prosecuted for this type of criminal activity, but Congresspersons somehow get a pass on profiting from insider information.
Source: CBS News: 60 Minutes
Soon after this 60 Minutes report of Congressional insider trading became public, President Obama signed into the The Stock Act to ban members of Congress from insider trading.
ReplyDeleteOf course, as soon as the dust settled and honest, ordinary Americans quit focusing on this issue, the President then signed a following bill reversing big pieces of the law and rendering The Stock Act pretty much ineffective.
So, I wonder if any Congresspersons or their friends have profited from all of the recent volatility they created in the marketplace? What better inside information is there than knowing that you're going to manufacture (or resolve) a crisis beforehand?