I don't see this Republican /Democratic ;blue /red .There is more than enough evidence that our Representatives in Washington live by a different set of rules that exempt them for activities that would be criminal for us . Since 2006, while the median congress person continued to get richer, the typical American household saw their wealth decline, dented by the 2008-09 financial crisis. Lawmakers ;both parties use their position to enhance their wealth through influence peddling and privileged information to make better investments. Like I said ,forget trying to prosecute ,this won't even get past the Ethics committee. That's because most of them to some degree use information they get in hearings to enrich themselves .Current insider trading laws do not apply to nonpublic information about current or upcoming congressional activity .Oh they were very clever about it . 2012 they passed a prohibition that the emperor signed to great fanfare . A year later they gutted it in legislation he also signed that did away with the on line disclosure provision of the law. Now to find out what trades have been made means going to the basement of the Congressional offices and requesting a print out . So for you and I want to find out when and if our representatives are trading ,it requires us to take a field trip to Washington.
They go into hearings and confidential meetings understanding new legislation is going to come out and are free to trade on that information.
If a lawmaker learns an upcoming bill will grant a company a large government contract, which could boost that company's stock, he or she is free to buy that stock ahead of the bill's public introduction. Ethics rules do not even require them to divest from industries they have direct jurisdiction over .And if they are not directly involved in the actual transactions more often than not it was their spouse or family member who profited from the information . Here is the solution ; don’t let public officials be active investors. Forget blind trusts . require them to divest of individual stocks . If they need to be in the market they should own mutual funds and index funds only.
https://www.npr.org/.../how-congress-quietly-overhauled...