Amy Klobuchar, MN
“I voted against this bill. I want to ban members of Congress from owning or trading stocks, but this bill still lets them do that. It also includes harmful rules that would make it harder for people to vote by mail.”
“Mr. President, I rise to discuss my vote on rollcall vote No. 253, the motion to proceed to the Stop Insider Trading Act. I strongly support efforts to remove potential conflicts of interest, promote strengthened ethical standards, and restore public trust in government. That is why I voted for commonsense legislation--the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act--which became law and bans lawmakers from trading on nonpublic information and requires lawmakers to disclose stock trades. And, it is why I am a cosponsor of the Ban Congressional Stock Trading Act, led by Senator Ossoff, which would ban Members of Congress from owning or trading individual stocks and similar investments while in office. But instead of voting on that legislation today, Senate Republicans brought to the floor a bill that would continue to let members own and sell stocks and to trade stocks in privately held companies and therefore potentially profit from insider knowledge. As someone who has never owned individual stocks, I believe this bill simply isn’t strong enough. I am also disappointed that congressional Republicans have attached unrelated provisions to this legislation that would undermine voting rights. The bill includes provisions to restrict access to the ballot box that are more severe than any law in any state. The bill would effectively end voting by mail and create new burdens for voters and election officials. Nothing is more fundamental to our democracy than our free and fair elections and the right of Americans to exercise their constitutional right to vote. Voting is how the American people make their voices heard and ensure their elected leaders are held accountable. While I have long supported efforts to ensure that lawmakers cannot use insider information to profit off of their elected office, we should not be making it harder for eligible Americans to cast their ballot. For that reason, I opposed the bill.”
Mr. President, I rise to discuss my vote on rollcall vote No. 253, the motion to proceed to the Stop Insider Trading Act. I strongly support efforts to remove potential conflicts of interest, promote strengthened ethical standards, and restore public trust in government. That is why I voted for commonsense legislation--the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act--which became law and bans lawmakers from trading on nonpublic information and requires lawmakers to disclose stock trades. And, it is why I am a cosponsor of the Ban Congressional Stock Trading Act, led by Senator Ossoff, which would ban Members of Congress from owning or trading individual stocks and similar investments while in office. But instead of voting on that legislation today, Senate Republicans brought to the floor a bill that would continue to let members own and sell stocks and to trade stocks in privately held companies and therefore potentially profit from insider knowledge. As someone who has never owned individual stocks, I believe this bill simply isn’t strong enough. I am also disappointed that congressional Republicans have attached unrelated provisions to this legislation that would undermine voting rights. The bill includes provisions to restrict access to the ballot box that are more severe than any law in any state. The bill would effectively end voting by mail and create new burdens for voters and election officials. Nothing is more fundamental to our democracy than our free and fair elections and the right of Americans to exercise their constitutional right to vote. Voting is how the American people make their voices heard and ensure their elected leaders are held accountable. While I have long supported efforts to ensure that lawmakers cannot use insider information to profit off of their elected office, we should not be making it harder for eligible Americans to cast their ballot. For that reason, I opposed the bill.