Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) took to X on Thursday to reiterate his call to ban congressional stock trading.
Gaetz was reacting to the news that Rep. Michael Guest purchased Nvidia stock, which has risen 32 percent in less than a month.
Mr. Guest serves as chairman of the House Ethics Committee.
During his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference last month, the Florida firebrand remarked that he has been fighting for ethical standards since day 1, while the chairman of the Ethics Committee is involved with insider trading, further violating federal law.
“I have problems with the Ethics Committee, which is really odd to me because I’m the one screaming loudest about actual ethics reforms,” Gaetz quipped.
Before zeroing in on Rep. Guest, the GOP lawmaker said, “Their sole purpose is to buy votes. And for the same reason you don’t let the umpire that on the game. Members of Congress should not be allowed to trade individual stocks.”
Gaetz said the ethics chairman “not only voted for the January 6 Commission” but “has become a brilliant stock trader while in office.”.
“And I admire the obvious genius—he knew exactly the right time to buy online gambling stocks,” he said. “Gaming securities netted him a hefty 36 percent gain. Not too shabby.”
Gaetz was also involved in a conflict with Sen. Markwayne Mullin after the Florida lawmaker exposed the latter for making millions out of stock trades.
On December 20, 2023, Quiver Quantitative, which shows how much Congress members earn from stock trades, revealed that Mullin’s net worth soared from $18 million in 2018 to $63 million in 2022.
The Florida lawmaker demanded the banning of members of Congress from the stock trade.
However, this move did not go well for Mullin, who called out Gaetz on X as well: “I hear @RepMattGaetz has criticism of hard-earned success — he should try building a business that gains value; it’s more gratifying than living off your daddy’s money.”
Gaetz clapped back and said, “The only thing I criticized were your stock trades while a member of Congress. I want to ban those trades. You cashed in and made millions.”
As of December last year, Mullin’s assets went from $26 million to $100 million, which includes shares in individual stock funds and exchange-traded funds.
In May 2023, Gaetz, Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) introduced the Bipartisan Restoring Faith in Government Act, a bill that would restrict trading and ownership of financial investments by members of Congress, as well as by their spouses and dependents.
