Never let it be said that the House of Representatives' top Democrat, Hakeem Jeffries (NY-8), hasn't learned a thing or two from his predecessor and mentor, Nancy Pelosi. In the latest demonstration of this, he appears to be using an old Pelosi trick to once more hobble an effort to ban stock-trading by members of Congress.
Why, we may very well wonder - indeed, we may very well wonder, although I think that we can probably make a pretty good guess. But Congressman Jeffries clearly doesn't want this to happen. The American Prospect's David Dayen has some interesting insights.
Last week, I reported on concerns that House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) was discouraging support for a bipartisan discharge petition to finally advance the exceedingly popular policy of ending congressional stock trading. Discharge petitions signed by a majority of House members get a guaranteed floor vote. The speculation was that Jeffries would rather keep the concept of a trading ban alive for campaigning (and maybe protect Democrats who want to keep trading) than take advantage of the ongoing rebellion against House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to make tangible progress.
I would say this is wholly confirmed now.
Confirmed, indeed; this bill, thanks to Jeffries, is now going nowhere fast. Under Jeffries, House Democrats have filed their own discharge petition, with a key difference:
The new proposal differs from the bipartisan bill in one key respect: It extends the stock trading ban to President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance. Regardless of the considerable merits of that idea, the reality is that no Republican will ever sign on to that, meaning that both competing discharge petitions will fail to obtain a majority.
“This is exactly what Pelosi did a few years ago,” said Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette of the Project on Government Oversight, referring to the former House Speaker’s endorsement of a trading ban in 2022 that extended to the Supreme Court, also blowing up a bipartisan negotiation. “This is not only an unserious effort, it’s an attempt to undermine and kill off the only bipartisan legislative vehicle that is gaining momentum. It’s really bad faith all around.”
Frankly, I'm inclined to agree with Mr. Dayen; sauce for the goose applies. If Congress is banned from trading, I have no issue with the president and vice president being likewise banned. But that's not the point here; the point is that thanks to this action, the chamber is split, and now there won't be any bill at all.
Nobody will ever convince me that Rep. Jeffries doesn't know this. And members of Congress are growing very wealthy indeed through this practice, with Nancy Pelosi at the top of the heap.
Read More: Again? New Bill Would Ban Insider Stock Trading by Congress
It's all a bit of a head-scratcher. This is a policy proposal that would be, almost certainly, overwhelmingly popular with voters. The party that pushes this through, that ends the use of a Congressional seat as a get-rich-quick scheme, will almost certainly see a bump in ensuing polling. But it just keeps not happening.
Any guesses why?
In January 2026, it looks like the House Republicans are going to take another shot at this. Honestly, this needs to happen. The opportunity for graft, for shenanigans, for double-dealing is just too blatant, too obvious, and too widespread. To Speaker Johnson and House Republicans, we should all say this: Get. This. Done.
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