this post was submitted on 05 Jun 2024

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365

46 members of Congress have violated a conflicts-of-interest law (www.rawstory.com)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

24 comments fedilink hide all child comments

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[–] [email protected] 76 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (2 children)

The standard fine for violating the STOCK Act is $200, but frequently the House Committee on Ethics and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics waive the fee.

Craig Holman, a Capitol Hill lobbyist on ethics and campaign finance rules for nonprofit Public Citizen, said the fee is one of two reasons why the STOCK Act is frequently violated.

“The penalty is so minimal that these millionaire members of Congress really don't care about it," Holman told Raw Story. “The second provision is the ethics committees are not really enforcing it or taking it seriously.”

So basically this "law" is just a suggestion.

[–] [email protected] 39 points 3 months ago (2 children)

So the penalty for insider trading is $200. That's just a Pay to Play fee for illegal market trading. Let's put some jailtime on that act, FFS.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Remember, that law was written by those who it will affect most. They'll never make it more than a slap on the wrist.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Some background information for those interested: the top traders in congress this year are 50:50 DNC and GOP, top trader was DNC Brian Higgins until he left office this year. Generally GOP do place higher but former speaker of the house Nancy Pelosi also often makes the top ten given she married the owner of an investment firm when they were both in college, 25 years before she entered congress, and they have joint assets.

The law, 2011-2012 S.2038 - STOCK Act, was introduced by Independent Democrat Senator Joseph I. Lieberman. It had 1 roll call in the house, 417 to 2, and 13 roll calls in the senate with many changes and amendments proposed until it passed 96 to 3.

Personally, I don't expect anything to ever come from the STOCK act in terms of punishments, but I'm happy that we have it or we wouldn't even be having these conversations in the first place.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago

The standard fine for violating the STOCK Act is $200, but frequently the House Committee on Ethics and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics waive the fee.

The penalty is $200, but only if they feel like paying it.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 3 months ago

The cost of doing business.

Income-based fines should really be more commonplace.

[–] [email protected] 42 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Fun fact: NASA employees are unable to even talk with congressional representatives about proposed scientific missions because it is considered a “conflict of interest”. Let that sink in. Meanwhile…

[–] [email protected] 26 points 3 months ago

identified as having violated the STOCK Act during 2023-2024

To be specific, these are people who didn’t file required financial disclosures on time during those years.

If a congressman committed insider trading, but filed disclosure and paperwork on time, they wouldn’t be counted here

[–] [email protected] 24 points 3 months ago (1 children)

It's not like anything is going to happen. Laws are more like guidelines for them.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Surely they will enact legislature to put a stop to... Checks notes... Themselves

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago

Must be another one of those checks and balances I keep hearing about

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 months ago

[–] [email protected] 13 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Only 46?

[–] [email protected] 13 points 3 months ago

Those were just the ones that were lazy enough to not bother hiding it

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

pretty much just amounts to a congressional "swear jar"

[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Just because I was curious: I counted 23 R, 22 D, 1 I. That might be off by one or two but I was surprised (well maybe not really) how evenly split it was

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago

Its a one party system in a two party costume.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Of course fucking Sarbanes is on the list

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

As someone who's done a ton of work getting companies to be SOX compliant I have a fresh new hatred for our system of government. I get a new one just about every day at this point.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

I only did that for a decade before switching to a cash basis field. It was so good for my sanity.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Didn't Martha go to jail for inside trading?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Wasn’t it just house arrest? Idk that feels like a lifetime ago

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

5 months in federal correctional facility.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

Maybe time to invest in that NANC ETF...