President Barack Obama’s national policy director circulated an email to Obama supporters Monday giving them an option to sign an online petition to ask House Republicans to pass the STOCK act.
The U.S. Senate will hold a vote this week regarding the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012, according to the email distributed by James Kvaal, Mr. Obama’s national policy director.
The bill is expected to pass in the Democratic controlled Senate with “bipartisan support later this week,” according to the email.
The bill would specifically prohibit members of Congress from using nonpublic information to make investment decisions on the open stock market.
President Obama made a plea for Congress to pass legislation banning congressional insider trading during his State of the Union speech last week. Senator Scott Brown, a Massachusetts Republican, was shown on MSNBC telling the president that the STOCK act bill was “on Harry’s desk,” as the president walked through the crowd after giving his SOTU speech.
The reference to “Harry’s desk” was referring to the bill being given to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the Nevada Democrat.
“I’m going to tell him to do it,” the president responded to Senator Brown as he signed an autograph.
The email distributed by Mr. Obama’s policy director Monday gives supporters a link to a website where they can submit their name and email address to the president, stating that they support his position in urging House Republicans to take action on the STOCK act legislation.
“This legislation is expected to pass the Senate with bipartisan support later this week,” writes Mr. Kvaal in the email, referring to the STOCK act. “But Republicans in the House have yet to move on it. There aren’t a lot of good reasons to disagree with this bill. So the question here isn’t how many people we have to persuade, but simply how loudly we can speak up to prevent the House Republicans from dodging this issue.”
In November of 2011, the CBS News program “60 Minutes” aired a special report focusing on congressional insider trading. The program characterized members of Congress as “Washington insiders” who use nonpublic information regarding pending legislation to make profitable investments on the stock market.
The “60 Minutes” special showed quesetionable investment decisions made by House Speaker John Boehner, an Ohio Republican and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat among others.
The airing of that program created a media uproar and caused reaction from members of congress and congressional committees alike.
Ms. Pelosi immediately denied the allegations of congressional insider trading lodged by the “60 Minutes” special.
Texas Governor Rick Perry, a former Republican presidential candidate, slammed Ms. Pelosi while on the campaign trail. Mr. Perry started using the allegations of congressional insider trading in his campaign rhetoric as reasons why voters should select a “Washington outsider” like himself.
Senator Brown originally filed the STOCK act bill in November, shortly after the “60 Minutes” special aired.
Now the president is asking American citizens submit their names and email addresses to tell lawmakers in the House to pass the bill, as it is expected to pass in the Senate later this week.
