On Tuesday, the House Financial Services Committee is slated to hold a hearing on the STOCK Act – short for Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act.
The bill, which has languished since first being introduced in 2006, now has over 150 sponsors and the Senate held its first-ever hearing on related legislation last week.
“We’ve had a lot of recent converts now that the public knows what’s going on,” quips Peter Schweizer, author of Throw Them All Out, a book which — along with a subsequent 60 Minutes profile — helped focus the nation’s attention on the trading activities of sitting members of Congress.
You can view the clip here or see it below.
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If the STOCK act passes, who is going to enforce the rules? The incompetent SEC?
If enforcement is weak or if the penalties are minor, then not much has been accomplished. Since there hasn’t been any major prosecutions against any of the finanical institutions, the public’s cynicism will continue to grow.