I am shocked that politicians are even allowed to trade options, I feel like shorting stocks and option trading should be off the table once you are elected to office.
Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
21–30 of 192 posts
Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#22Sorry if this is a stupid question - I've only seen options as a compensation mechanism. Can you buy options on the open market just like shares? If not, how do politicians end up with options?
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Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#23Instead of fixating that Pelosi made more than others I think right question is, why someone who actually can impact stock options and also has information not available to the public is allowed to trade?
I've often wondered about this. It's mind boggling that this is allowed. A congressman can short oil stocks and the very next day propose a large tax on oil producers then promptly cash out, and be completely within the bounds of the law.
I don't think it's mindboggling at all. It makes perfect sense that lawmakers would not make laws that negatively affect lawmakers.
I also think that the amount of nonpublic information that congresscritters have access to is substantially overblown. The fact that they can pass laws affecting the industries is a bigger lever, in my view.
Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#24Perhaps someone could create an index fund that tracks trades by members of Congress. Though on second thought it might not be very useful since there can be quite a delay between the transaction and when it's disclosed.
It looks like they outperform the general market and hedge funds, probably not a bad idea: https://www.barrons.com/articles/SB5000142405311190443360457...
Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
The STOCK Act is supposed to prevent this. But the same politicians who passed the law and had the media cover it as much as possible, then later quietly passed another that the law would not be enforced.
Do you have a reference to the specific legal code which includes the amendment? Thanks for coming through on this ask. I'm having a hard time finding it, and it's a point of contention I plan on raising with Virginia legislators if any of them voted in favor.
Here you go. Happened in 2013 under Obama:
But on Monday, when the president signed a bill reversing big pieces of the law, the emailed announcement was one sentence long. There was no fanfare last week either, when the Senate and then the House passed the bill in largely empty chambers using a fast-track procedure known as unanimous consent.
https://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2013/04/16/17749...
Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#26Instead of fixating that Pelosi made more than others I think right question is, why someone who actually can impact stock options and also has information not available to the public is allowed to trade?
I think that is what they are implying with this information.
Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#27Earlier quoted context omitted.
The STOCK Act is supposed to prevent this. But the same politicians who passed the law and had the media cover it as much as possible, then later quietly passed another that the law would not be enforced.
Do you have a reference to the specific legal code which includes the amendment? Thanks for coming through on this ask. I'm having a hard time finding it, and it's a point of contention I plan on raising with Virginia legislators if any of them voted in favor.
Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#28Sorry if this is a stupid question - I've only seen options as a compensation mechanism. Can you buy options on the open market just like shares? If not, how do politicians end up with options?
Of course, they are a huge market. You can do it with most brokers including robinhood.
Not only can you buy options, you can also write the contract and sell it on the market.
Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#29Perhaps someone could create an index fund that tracks trades by members of Congress. Though on second thought it might not be very useful since there can be quite a delay between the transaction and when it's disclosed.
It's not a fund, but hopefully they're still up and running. https://govtrades.org/
Re: Pelosi and a lifetime of trading
#30Congress has some of the richest people in America. I’ve always been intrigued by that.
"Intrigued"? You mean suspicious?
Yes, deeply suspicious, I was trying to split the difference and not get political. I think it’s terrible. Members of Congress should not be allowed to own, trade, or have anything to do with the stock market. I always heard a rumor that members of Congress are always richer when they leave than when they entered. That should really piss Americans off, but it doesn’t depending on which party is in power, and which party that person subscribes to.
Edit: Grammar and Spelling