Pete Ricketts, NE
“I want the Senate to pass my bill against insider trading. It stops new lawmakers from buying stock and requires notice before selling existing stock. Americans do not trust Congress because lawmakers trade stocks using secret information. Passing this will help rebuild that trust.”
“Mr. President, I rise today to urge my colleagues to vote for the Stop Insider Trading Act that will be voted on a little bit later today. Eighty percent of Americans believe that we do a poor job of separating the inside information that we get from our financial situation, and Congress’ approval rating is only 15 percent. Why do Americans have such a lack of faith in our institutions? Well, in part, because of what has happened with trading in Congress. A former Democrat Speaker of the House was publishing her trades and people were using that as a trading strategy and they were making money off of it. Just the appearance of impropriety leads people to a lack of faith in our institutions. My Stop Insider Trading Act would help address that. It would prevent anybody who comes into the House or Senate from owning any stock--or rather from buying any stock. You would not be allowed to buy any stock once you come into the House or the Senate. And for the stock you already own, if you are going to sell it, you have to give 7 to 14 days’ notice so the market would know that ahead of time and be able to take action, if they thought that that Member had inside information. This bill also has penalties to make it stick: a minimum of a $2,000 fine, but 10 percent of the proceeds--or 10 percent of the transaction. So, for example, say somebody sold a million dollars’ worth of stock without giving the proper notice, that would be a $100,000 fine. On top of that, they would have to give up all of the profits. We need to restore the faith of the American people in the House and in the Senate. My Stop Insider Trading Act will help to be able to do this, by letting Americans know that their elected representatives are not using this position for profit but for public service. I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation, and especially my colleagues on the other side of the aisle who have blocked this in the past. Let’s work together to restore Americans’ faith, which is to vote for the Stop Insider Trading Act. I yield the floor.”
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Mr. President, I rise today to urge my colleagues to vote for the Stop Insider Trading Act that will be voted on a little bit later today. Eighty percent of Americans believe that we do a poor job of separating the inside information that we get from our financial situation, and Congress’ approval rating is only 15 percent. Why do Americans have such a lack of faith in our institutions? Well, in part, because of what has happened with trading in Congress. A former Democrat Speaker of the House was publishing her trades and people were using that as a trading strategy and they were making money off of it. Just the appearance of impropriety leads people to a lack of faith in our institutions. My Stop Insider Trading Act would help address that. It would prevent anybody who comes into the House or Senate from owning any stock--or rather from buying any stock. You would not be allowed to buy any stock once you come into the House or the Senate. And for the stock you already own, if you are going to sell it, you have to give 7 to 14 days’ notice so the market would know that ahead of time and be able to take action, if they thought that that Member had inside information. This bill also has penalties to make it stick: a minimum of a $2,000 fine, but 10 percent of the proceeds--or 10 percent of the transaction. So, for example, say somebody sold a million dollars’ worth of stock without giving the proper notice, that would be a $100,000 fine. On top of that, they would have to give up all of the profits. We need to restore the faith of the American people in the House and in the Senate. My Stop Insider Trading Act will help to be able to do this, by letting Americans know that their elected representatives are not using this position for profit but for public service. I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation, and especially my colleagues on the other side of the aisle who have blocked this in the past. Let’s work together to restore Americans’ faith, which is to vote for the Stop Insider Trading Act. I yield the floor.