Analysis · Speech on a bill · beta

Bryan Steil

Republican on Stop Insider Trading Act 2026-07-22

738 words · 39 sentences · 53 clauses

Statement grade

Average 79 / 100

A score under 50 is red. Choose a measurement to see where it lost points and why; choose it again to clear.

Procedure 9%Thanks 10%Claims 44%Positioning 10%The ask 4%Reasoning 21%Anecdote 2%

This view breaks the statement into its steps and names what each one does.

Mr. Speaker, Procedure · 8 wordsI yield myself the balance of my time.Procedure Mr. Speaker, Thanks · 15 wordsas we close out today, I begin by thanking leadership for giving us this opportunity.Thanks Claims · 17 wordsCongress has not had a bill on the House floor on this topic with this opportunity before. Thanks · 58 wordsI thank Speaker Johnson, Leader Scalise, Whip Emmer for their work on this. I also thank the Members of this body who have doggedly worked on this issue, in particular Congressman Chip Roy, as well as Brian Fitzpatrick, Tim Burchett, Anna Paulina Luna, and others for their feedback and work throughout the process to get to this point.Thanks Claims · 8 wordsBefore us is the Stop Insider Trading Act. Mr. Speaker, Procedure · 23 wordsI will touch on a handful of things that came up today about what is in and what is not in the bill.Procedure Positioning · 34 wordsI think this is important for the American people to know. Some of the arguments made today are what I call a Goldilocks argument: The bill doesn’t do enough. The bill does too much.Positioning The ask · 12 wordsLet’s take this moment to take a real and substantive step forward. Procedure · 13 wordsI will begin as I close by discussing what is in the bill.Procedure Claims · 17 wordsThe bill ensures that Members and lawmakers cannot use their positions to profit off of insider information. Mr. Speaker, Claims · 5 wordsinsider trading is already illegal, Reasoning · 17 wordsand individuals who engage in it should be held accountable by the full force of the law. Procedure · 1 wordsHowever, ProcedureClaims · 10 wordsas we know, prosecuting insider trading is actually quite difficult. Reasoning · 29 wordsIt is why this bill is so important to provide a bright-line rule to remove even the appearance of impropriety that someone has leveraged their position for financial gain. Claims · 22 wordsUnder this bill, Members, their spouses, and their dependent children are prevented from purchasing individual companies’ shares of stock, period, full stop.¹ Procedure · 16 wordsThe question then becomes: What if a Member arrives in Congress with stock in their portfolio?Procedure Anecdote · 13 wordsSay they are saving up for their retirement or their children’s college education.Anecdote Claims · 44 wordsWe provide an opportunity with 7 days advance notice to be able to make that sale.² That 7 days of advance notice tells the American people what is going on in advance rather than current law, which allows a 30-day filing after the fact.³ Reasoning · 19 wordsThis prevents Members from being able to profit off of any insider information they may gain in this institution. Mr. Speaker, Claims · 43 wordsthe violations and penalties associated with this bill are steep: a fine equal to $2,000 or 10 percent of the transaction, ⁴as well as a disgorgement of profits. Violators would be forfeiting any gain realized if they fail to comply with this legislation. Reasoning · 10 wordsThe legislation is critical in restoring trust in this institution.Unearned certainty Claims · 63 wordsOne of the challenges we face is that this institution 15 years ago passed the STOCK Act, publicly disclosing any trade a Member of this institution makes.⁵ However, the disclosure rules lack detail and are filed a month after the transaction.⁶ When you couple that with the increased attention to Member trades, in particular, through social media accounts, it has fueled public frustration. Reasoning · 50 wordsI believe this is our opportunity where we can simply stop Members of Congress from trading individual stocks, period, full stop. Doing so removes even the appearance of wrongdoing. Americans should be confident that individuals working here are working on their behalf, not on behalf of their own financial interests. Claims · 73 wordsThis bill is coupled with the Voter ID Act. In jurisdictions across this country, States that neighbor mine, like Illinois or Minnesota, or as far away as California or New York, voters can go to the polls on election day and cast a ballot without providing proof of their identity.⁷ Our Voter ID Act implements commonsense election integrity measures by requiring voters to show photo ID when casting a ballot in Federal elections.⁸Off point Mr. Speaker, Claims · 21 words24 States already require some form of photo ID to vote.⁹ The bill simply takes this standard and makes it nationwide.Off point Positioning · 42 wordsBoth of these provisions are commonsense reforms, but, in particular, the Stop Insider Trading Act is a moment when we can take a tremendous step forward in the ethics here in the House of Representatives, in the Senate, and in this institution.Positioning Reasoning · 27 wordsAt a period of time when Americans are struggling to gain confidence in Congress, this legislation before us gives us that opportunity to begin restoring the trust.Unearned certainty Mr. Speaker, The ask · 19 wordsI encourage all of my colleagues in this body today to vote in favor of the legislation before us, Procedure · 9 wordsand I yield back the balance of my time.Procedure

At a glance

Lost points for

Switch Claims on to list the checkable claims here.

What the tags mean

Signal · 65

20 of 28 deductions are Signal

Signal checks whether every part makes a point, gives a reason, or asks for action. A low score means the speaker filled time with fluff, pleasantries, or attacks.

Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “I yield myself the balance of my time.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
Thanks and tributes.What the tags mean “as we close out today, I begin by thanking leadership for giving us this opportunity.”Thanks: no claim, reason or ask.
Thanks and tributes.What the tags mean “I thank Speaker Johnson, Leader Scalise, Whip Emmer for their work on this.”Thanks: no claim, reason or ask.
Thanks and tributes.What the tags mean “I also thank the Members of this body who have doggedly worked on this issue, in particular Congressman Chip Roy,”Thanks: no claim, reason or ask.
Thanks and tributes.What the tags mean “as well as Brian Fitzpatrick, Tim Burchett, Anna Paulina Luna,”Thanks: no claim, reason or ask.
Thanks and tributes.What the tags mean “and others for their feedback and work throughout the process to get to this point.”Thanks: no claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “I will touch on a handful of things that came up today about what is in and what is not in the bill.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
Praise, blame or attack with no claim, reason or ask in it.What the tags mean “I think this is important for the American people to know.”Positioning: praise, blame or attack. No claim, reason or ask.
Praise, blame or attack with no claim, reason or ask in it.What the tags mean “Some of the arguments made today are what I call a Goldilocks argument:”Positioning: praise, blame or attack. No claim, reason or ask.
Praise, blame or attack with no claim, reason or ask in it.What the tags mean “The bill doesn’t do enough.”Positioning: praise, blame or attack. No claim, reason or ask.
Praise, blame or attack with no claim, reason or ask in it.What the tags mean “The bill does too much.”Positioning: praise, blame or attack. No claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “I will begin as I close by discussing what is in the bill.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “However,”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “The question then becomes:”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “What if a Member arrives in Congress with stock in their portfolio?”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “Say they are saving up for their retirement or their children’s college education.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
Praise, blame or attack with no claim, reason or ask in it.What the tags mean “Both of these provisions are commonsense reforms,”Positioning: praise, blame or attack. No claim, reason or ask.
Praise, blame or attack with no claim, reason or ask in it.What the tags mean “but, in particular, the Stop Insider Trading Act is a moment when we can take a tremendous step forward in the ethics here in the House of Representatives, in the Senate,”Positioning: praise, blame or attack. No claim, reason or ask.
Praise, blame or attack with no claim, reason or ask in it.What the tags mean “and in this institution.”Positioning: praise, blame or attack. No claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “and I yield back the balance of my time.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.

Relevance · 81

6 of 28 deductions are Relevance

Relevance checks whether the speaker stays on topic and answers the question asked. A low score means the speaker dodged the issue. Measured against the bill under debate.

Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “This bill is coupled with the Voter ID Act.”Turns to a different bill, the Voter ID Act, rather than the Stop Insider Trading Act.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “In jurisdictions across this country, States that neighbor mine, like Illinois or Minnesota,”Discusses voter ID practices in other states, off the bill under debate.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “or as far away as California or New York, voters can go to the polls on election day and cast a ballot without providing proof of their identity.”Continues the voter ID point about ballots cast without photo ID.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “Our Voter ID Act implements commonsense election integrity measures by requiring voters to show photo ID when casting a ballot in Federal elections.”Describes the Voter ID Act’s photo ID requirement, not the bill under debate.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “24 States already require some form of photo ID to vote.”Repeats the state photo ID statistic for the voter ID point.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “The bill simply takes this standard and makes it nationwide.”Concludes the voter ID point about making that standard nationwide.

Respect · no score

Not checked: graded before this measurement existed. Excluded from the average.

Respect checks whether the speaker argued with people’s positions and records rather than attacking the people: insults, mockery, or bad motives assigned to them. Criticism of what someone did, however strong, is not marked.

Clarity · 92

2 of 28 deductions are Clarity

Clarity checks for plain speaking, clear ownership of actions, and honest limits on certainty. A low score means vague promises or evasive language.

Something stated as certain with nothing to back it.What the tags mean “is critical in restoring trust”Asserts the bill will restore trust as a settled fact without any evidence or measure offered.
Something stated as certain with nothing to back it.What the tags mean “gives us that opportunity to begin restoring the trust”States the legislation restores public trust as if it were an established outcome, with no source or condition offered.

Claims · 9

This list shows the factual statements you can check for yourself: the words as said, and the claim restated to stand on its own.

1“and their dependent children are prevented from purchasing individual companies’ shares of stock, period, full stop.”The Stop Insider Trading Act prohibits Members of Congress, their spouses, and their dependent children from purchasing individual companies’ shares of stock.search
2“7 days advance notice”The Stop Insider Trading Act gives Members with existing stock a 7-day advance notice period before selling it.search
3“which allows a 30-day filing after the fact.”Under current law, Members of Congress file trade disclosures within 30 days after the transaction.search
4“a fine equal to $2,000 or 10 percent of the transaction”The Stop Insider Trading Act sets a penalty of a fine equal to $2,000 or 10 percent of the transaction, plus disgorgement of profits.search
5“15 years ago passed the STOCK Act”Congress passed the STOCK Act, which requires public disclosure of Members’ trades, 15 years ago (circa 2012).search
6“the disclosure rules lack detail and are filed a month after the transaction”Under the STOCK Act’s disclosure rules, Members’ trade reports are filed a month after the transaction.search
7“voters can go to the polls on election day and cast a ballot without providing proof of their identity”In States including Illinois, Minnesota, California, and New York, voters can cast a ballot on election day without providing proof of identity.search
8“requiring voters to show photo ID when casting a ballot in Federal elections”The Voter ID Act requires voters to show photo ID when voting in Federal elections.search
9“24 States already require some form of photo ID to vote”24 States currently require some form of photo ID to vote.search

Analyzed on 2026-09-15