Wouldn’t it be nice to have inside information about what’s coming down the pipe for certain industries and companies before it happens? Imagine knowing Enron was about to collapse weeks before it happened. What benefits could you have from that knowledge?
Let’s see. You could sell the stock and protect yourself from the coming crash. You could short the stock and profit most of the way down (although there are risks of a complete crash). The advantage is that you can act before anyone else can, meaning you probably won’t have to worry about finding a buyer of a good performing stock because everyone else thinks things are going great.
I know this issue well because my grandpa worked for Enron and lost more than half of his retirement in that crash. It was devastating to a retiree that had saved his whole life to provide a legacy for his family.
So I think it’s fair to say that, while it would be nice to have that information, the rest of us citizens don’t usually get that ahead of time. What’s more is that if we engage in this practice, known as insider trading, we’ll likely go to prison.
Not historically true for some members of congress.
The U.S. Senate lists financial disclosers from Senate members and what's on it has created a firestorm of backlash from citizens across the country.
The data shows that at least 4 U.S. Senators had sold off massive amounts of stock just prior to this market crash. This comes at a time where some of those senators had seemed to downplay the seriousness of the Coronavirus outbreak, in public, and took self-protective measures in their personal investments.
Richard Burr, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, unloaded somewhere between $628,000 and $1.7 million worth of stock just before the devastating market crash, according to Pro Publica.
His explanation?
“Senator Burr filed a financial disclosure form for personal transactions made several weeks before the U.S. and financial markets showed signs of volatility due to the growing coronavirus outbreak,” a Burr spokesperson said.
That's kind of the point, right? The advantage is to get out BEFORE the crash. Burr has been accused of downplaying the severity of the outbreak, early on, in public and telling a much different story in private meetings with business leaders.
Tucker Carlson called on Burr to explain himself on Thursday night:
“Otherwise, he must resign from the Senate and face prosecution for insider trading,” he told his audience. “There is no greater moral crime than betraying your country in a time of crisis.”
Diane Feinstein, a Democrat from CA and who serves as ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, was also listed as selling off between $1.5 million and $6 million in stock in a single company a few weeks before the crash.
Senator Kelly Loeffler, R-GA, and her husband sold off somewhere between $1.2 million and $3.1 million worth of stock between January 24 and February 14, according to The Daily Beast. Interestingly, Jan. 24 was the same day she was in a briefing with the Coronavirus Task Force.
James Inhofe, a senator from Oklahoma, also sold off around $400k worth of stock on January 27.
The senators will likely need to explain themselves on this issue. While it may be tough to prove they used private information to execute the transactions, in a court of law, early reactions from voters on both sides of the aisle are screaming foul. It's certainly not leaving a clean taste in the mouths of the people they represent.
Click here to look at the U.S. Senate Financial Disclosures report.
For more on this story check out Fox News.
If we really knew all our politicians do to better themselves than looking out for the US, it would make us all sicker. This is just another example of the corruption in our government and shows that
the greed of politicians runs this country.
Agree with all of your points. How do these politicians come to DC as paupers and leave as multi-millionaires like Paul Ryno and Dingy Harry Reid?
On the stock sales. We know of 4 – there’s gotta be many, many more…
Forget the Stock market , money laundering through Ukraine and it is not just the Bidens doing it ! You’ve got to believe many in the swamp have been Laundering money through Ukraine for years .
Yes your right, adam shifty is one of them. Look it up on Goggle , hr received money thru another company connected to Barisma.
Another good case in point: Bernie Sanders. Bernie lived his non-political life laxy and living off the taxpayers. As a senator his fortunes have increased immensely. Congress is a far cry from where the founders imaged it should be. Their view was of citizens who relied on their personal incomes prior to be elected with the taxpayers only footing their expenses while fulfilling their duties in the nation’s capital.
We must replace current politicians and finally drain the swamp. Rules must be changed to expect more honesty from politicians. Term limits are a must. Probably the most important thing we can do. The corruption and blatant stupidity of Nancy, Chuck, Charlie Brown and Democratic Party leadership must be stopped, they are criminals. What the Democraps have done to our President since he was elected is a crime, called TREASON and it must be stopped. Chuck should be arrested for what he said about the supreme court justices. This double standard must be stopped before the people take care of it themselves. Violence is just around the corner if they keep doing what they are doing. It is a shame that a handfull of stupid people can ruin our country. We must stop it and make sure it never happens again. Government is not the answer. Trump is the first of his kind, we must find more leaders like him to make this country great again.
I’m not so sure Trumpy is as independent as we would like him to be. However, I believe the system has been so corrupted that you won’t get on a ballot unless you’ve indicated you’re willing to play the game. However, the president is in a much different situation than someone who has been elected to Congress.
The president, could, in theory, act against the corrupt system and attempt to do what’s best for the nation. Still, if he (president) deviates too far the swamps program, it could prove fatal.
I agree. We the people need to take back congress
The ones that make the rules rule for themselves.
And these are the rules that ” WE THE PEOPLE ” do not get to vote on. like in their pay raises, ect. And it is time for that to stop, not in the SUPER DUPER ELECTRONIC age of phone texting, voting on their B.S. law ideas, and even for elected official extement , should be able to be done over the phone. And there should be ways to keep it from being HACKED by anyone.
I am sure these are not the only ones. These are only the obvious ones who attended the meeting. Check them ALL out. Let the public know. Need a new law that no Senator or Congressperson or their spouses can own stock, since they enact laws that can influence the markets either way. If they do not like that rule, do not run for office.
I’m ok with them owning stock in lieu of a lifetime pension. They need to be watched and held accountable. Without fear of punishment why wouldn’t they take advantage. Hey MARTHA STEWART- what is your take on this???
They all need to resign immediately. An investigation should be begin immediately. I’m wondering if Loeffler was appointed by GA governor to vacated Senate seat because of she and her husband’s donation to his political campaign. Her husband is president of stock market which is handy. She is co-owner of women’s pro basketball team. Poor little rich girl. Burr is a skunk. Loeffler only Dem involved. Shame on those 3 Repubs. Hope the voters remember.
Loeffler isn’t a democrat!!
Feinstein is the democrat
and they show it. in their actions , and what party do burr and inhofe belong to ?? are they demo-donkeys or rinos. Well here is the answer 2 demo-donkeys and 2 rinos. right now it looks neck and neck. I wonder how many more jump into the race ?
YES THEY DO, but who is the 3rd republican ? I count 2 demo-donkeys and 2 rinos . But they have broke the LAW , “INSIDER TRADING ” and I,am sure this is not the only time this goes on. Many BIG DOLLAR POCKETS are guilty as sin on this.
Diane Feinstein is a Democrat
Would it be called INSIDER TRADERS
Didn’t Martha Stewart go to prison for same thing
FORCE them to give up their seat or face a wide open investigation, to which many of their friends will aso suffer.
In their defense, I asked my broker to sell off everything based on the market projections shortly before the C-19 pandemic. Unfortunately for me, he talked me into reducing certain stocks and keeping some… Too many in hindsight. These politicians could see the same thing coming that many of us knew to be an inevitable market correction. It is a hard call to accuse them of insider trading when there were warning signs everywhere.
Wrong is wrong so stop making excuses for them!
Unless a person has knowledge of how stock transactions are made, it would be wise to refrain from accusing investors of any wrongdoing until evidence proves otherwise. It’s normal for investors to avail themselves of investment advisors, many of which have given control of their investments to those entities to buy or sell as market conditions change, which is precisely what drives the market. Others subscribe to market evaluation sources, and use those subscriptions to do their own transactions. That’s what a ‘free market’ is all about. It’s nothing more than a person’s means of creating security for themselves and their families, while providing funds for business entities to conduct and grow their ventures. It’s commonly known as ‘venture capital funding’. It has risks as well as benefits, some of which can be very risky, or very great financially. That’s what drives the markets. Participating is available to anyone willing to partake, from people with limited finances to those day workers and families wishing to grow their retirement prospects, and everyone in between, even government employees and entities, as well as elected officials. It all hinges on how well conditions that drive the markets are read and understood by each investment stock holder as to making their own decisions about whether to use the services of subscriptions, client management services, digital management, or their own judgement in buying or selling. Insider trading is morally reprehensible, and under most circumstances is illegal, but a mass selloff is not necessarily due to ‘insider’ trading as many investors use automatic ‘triggers’ set to buy or sell when a particular stock rises or falls to a level that was set, sometimes well in advance of price changes, without actually making those transactions themselves. In that light it would be wise to withhold judgement in the case of elected political lawmakers until specific information is proven showing any criminal wrongdoing. To do otherwise leaves one susceptible to legal liability.
BEING A DEMOCRAT OR REPUBLICAN DOES NOT HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THE SENATORS OR CONGRESSMEN /WOMEN WHO ARE INVOLVED IN INSIDER TRADING. BOTH PARTIES INVOLVED COMMITED A CRIME AND SHOULD BE PUNISHED.
WHY DO THEY THINK IT’S ALRIGHT FOR THEM TO MAKE LAWS, BUT THINK, THEY ARE EXEMPT FROM OBEYING THE VERY LAWS THEY PASS ON US THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. IT IS NOTHING MORE THAN GREED. AND TO THINK, OUR TAX DOLLARS PAYS THEIR SALARIES. YET, WE HAVE NO CHOICE OR DECISION ON WHAT HAPPENS TO THEM. JUST LIKE THE CLINTON’S AND OBAMA’S WHO LAUNDERED MONEY BUT THEY HAVEN’T BEEN CHARGED WITH A CRIME.
THIS IS WHY PRESIDENT TRUMP IS DRAINING THE SWAMP..
GOD BLESS AMERICA AND GOD BLESS PRESIDENT TRUMP,2020
THERE NEEDS TO BE A LIMIT ON THE AMOUNT OF TIME (YEARS) A CONGRESSMAN OR CONGRESSWOMAN OR SENATOR SERVES IN OFFICE. JUST LIKE NANCY PELOSI , AND OTHERS WHO HAVE BEEN CAREER POLITICIANS. SOME ARE, ALONG WITH THERE FAMILY MEMBERS ARE MAKING MONEY FROM THE UKRAINE AND OTHER INTEREST AS WELL… THIS IS A CONFLICT OF INTEREST.
IT IS ALSO A CRIME . I AM TIRED OF MY TAX DOLLARS PADDING THEIR POCKETS. IT SICKENS ME AND IT SHOULD EVERY AMERICAN.
There is nothing new here…Members of Congress have always felt themselves special and not subject to insider trading laws…Martha Stewart went to prison for doing this…but if you’re a memebr of congress, and you make $180K a year in salary, and leave Congress as a multi multi millionaire a few years later, oh well everybody shrugs and just accepts it for what it is…has been going on forever, and that’s why people spend millions of dollars campaigning for a job that pays what middle managers make in the private sector….it’s crooked as hell, and why the American people accept this from their politicians is a mystery…I guess it’s well, I voted for him or her, and if they are exposed as crooks, and liars it makes me look stupid…so everybody just shuts up and goes along with it…sad but all too true. If anybody believes these politicians are in office to help and serve “the People”, they are idiots. It is all about making themselves rich.
“DOTARD” Trump is the financial violations “KING” . When are those “TAX” returns ? The money trail runs like-Russia,Saudia Arabia,Turkey to name a few of this moron’s nefarious business associates.
The first four lessons learned were introduced to a group of citizens in 1989. the last one was introduced within the first two years of Donald Trumps first term. Soldier/Cop/Grunt, Retired
* The American people are the most effectively lied to people in modern times thanks primarily to the American political class, the American bureaucracy, the American media, and American academia.
* Arrogance coupled with ignorance equals stupidity.
* The greatest threats to the American people are the corrupt and/or incompetent politicians/bureaucrats/academicians found at every level of government/academia, and the majority of the American so-called media.
* Most of the politicians/bureaucrats/academicians I have encountered during my years as a soldier/cop I most kindly refer to as; self-serving, witless, cowards.
* After carefully watching the whole of the political class since Donald J. Trump walked down that escalator in Trump Tower to date, I can say without reservation that most of the group will sell their souls and our bodies just to remain in power. (Added 2019)
I am a life-long, free market, individual rights and responsibilities, and low regulation Republican. This kind of behavior by our government representatives borders on treason. Why is a murder necessarily worse than a major white-color crime, like insider trading, being committed by Senators and Congressmen? A murder kills one person; some white collar crimes kill hundreds or thousands of innocent people and retirees (think suicides and early deaths from Enron and Worldcom and dozens more bankruptcies brought on by fraud; think mortgage-backed securities and real estate financing frauds in 2007 – 2009 and the lives they ruined). Either one is terrible. But aren’t white collar crimes much, much worse than murders? If so, where’s the punishment? One Wall Street guy in 2008-2010 (Michael Milken) and no politicians (maybe a lost job once in a while). Not only that, but the terrible laws that strangles our nation (e.g. banking laws) and the 98% honest workers on Wall Street and elsewhere who are crushed for generations and prevent the whole country from realizing its full potential for a generation? These are huge burdens on our whole country! How about life in prison for Senator Burr, and others who get convicted for serious white collar crimes? That would stop 99% of the worst, most devastating, and deadly white collar crimes fast. Why don’t our politicians enact these laws? Again, I’m not a Left Wing extremist. I just look for common sense solutions. Help me all other readers!!
I agree with you they should be some prison time for them and made to leave their position for ever and never be allowed to even run for dog catcher for life! i am angered by their betrayal of their actions of greed and using inside information to enrich them selves!
WE THE PEOPLE, need a Constitutional Amendment stipulating that Congress and all elected officials shall be, at all times, subject to the same laws, rules and regulations and be responsible in their individual capacity for any consequences thereof, as applicable to an average Citizen of the United States of America, and not be eligible for any exception whatsoever.
These people in congress and the senate are real greedy scum. The AG should go after them and call for returning ALL gains and savings in fines and forced out of office and given real jail time. Term limits,two in office and 1 in jail. They must be punished for their actions. They are no better than any citizen.
I think there should be an investigation (public, perhaps)… after all, this is still America (for the time being). I don’t blame anyone for jumping off a burning bus, the question is if they did it on a hunch, advice from their broker, etc. or if they were given info in that meeting that the rest of us don’t get to see. The meeting transcript should hold the answer to that particular question.
I wonder who else was in that meeting?
I believe insider trading was not even illegal for Congressmen until recently. If they serve 2 years in Congress, they get lifetime pensions. And none of this crappy Social Security stuff. Theirs is special and gold-plated! They get healthcare.
“Never have so many done so little so poorly for so many and gotten paid so much for doing it” than our Congressmen. What an embarrassing crowd!
Need to hang all of these bastards
This probably helped start the crash. They should be arrested . But we all know that there are a lot of crooked politicians. They look out for themselves first.