WaPo editorial criticizes Democrats for 'making excuses', delaying ban on lawmakers trading stocks

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The Washington Post editorial board criticized House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and congressional Democrats for, thus far, failing to pass legislation that would ban lawmakers from trading stocks. 

The piece, titled "Democrats should stop making excuses and ban lawmakers’ stock-trading," expressed discontent with Congress' lack of action on this issue. 

"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has been signaling all month that her chamber will pass a bill banning lawmakers from trading individual assets such as stocks. Yet by the time the text finally arrived this week, the prospect of success looked dim," the editors lamented.

"That invites the question: How much does leadership care about getting this done?" they continued.

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks at a press conference. (Getty Images)

Nancy Pelosi and her husband, Paul Pelosi, have faced criticism for their timely stock trades, which often align with the passage of major legislation. For example, just before the CHIPS Act passed earlier this year, Mr. Pelosi purchased $1 million in Nvidia, a computer chip company.

"There’s plenty that makes it unseemly at best and insidious at worst for Congress to deal in undiversified investments: Lawmakers’ access to privileged information and their ability to pass policies that can affect both individual companies and entire industries are a recipe for corruption — real or perceived," The Post editorial board argued. 

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Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi and husband Paul Pelosi.  (Photo by Samuel Corum/AFP via Getty Images))

"This reality is what made Ms. Pelosi’s reversal last winter on supporting restrictions so welcome and what makes the delays and difficulties in bringing a viable proposal to the floor today so discouraging," the article continued. 

The editors argued leaders in D.C. are intentionally dragging their feet in order to stall the legislation. 

"Multiple bipartisan proposals went nowhere; a drafting process led by Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) took place largely behind closed doors without any GOP involvement; the legislation that finally emerged did so close enough to the legislature’s fall break that skeptical lawmakers could use its lateness as an excuse not to vote yes on a bill they haven’t had the time to understand," they wrote.

In this Nov. 2, 2020 photo, sunlight shines on the U.S. Capitol building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

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"Congress still has a chance to make this critical reform if it moves quickly — and carefully. But Democrats, while they still command a majority in the House, must show they are serious about getting it done," they wrote. 

While her annual government salary is $223,500 a year, Pelosi's net worth is estimated to be $114 million. She has denied that her husband has ever made stock purchases based on information she gave him.