Texas – “Today, Democrats showed their true colors by BLOCKING the Stop Insider Trading Act, which would ban the trading of individual stocks by Members of Congress,” Texas Sen. John Cornyn said in a Sept. 30 post on X.
Cornyn called the legislation “commonsense” and said it is widely supported by Americans and Texans, accusing Democrats of claiming to oppose corruption and insider trading while failing to support the measure when given the opportunity.
“What a shame,” Cornyn said.
The comments came after the U.S. Senate blocked a Republican-backed bill that would have imposed new restrictions on stock trading by members of Congress, their spouses and dependent children.
The Senate voted 53-47 on Sept. 30 to prevent the measure from advancing, falling short of the 60 votes needed to overcome the procedural hurdle. Reuters reported that Democrats opposed the measure because they said it did not go far enough to create a complete ban on congressional stock trading.
The legislation, known as the Stop Insider Trading Act, was led in the Senate by Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska and had been cosponsored by Cornyn. Cornyn previously said the bill would prohibit members of Congress, their spouses and dependent children from purchasing publicly traded stocks while requiring advance public notice before certain stock sales.
Under the proposal, members of Congress and their spouses and dependent children would have been prohibited from purchasing new stocks in publicly traded companies. The bill also would have required public notice between seven and 14 days before an intended stock sale and imposed financial penalties for violations.
The House had already passed the legislation in July by a 232-198 vote, including support from 13 Democrats. The measure therefore needed Senate approval before it could move forward.
Democrats, however, argued that the legislation was not a sufficiently strong ban on congressional stock trading.
CBS News reported that Democrats wanted a broader prohibition that would also apply to the president and members of the executive branch, while arguing that the Republican-backed bill would allow lawmakers to keep existing stock holdings and continue certain types of trading.
The legislation also included an election-related provision that became a major point of disagreement.
The bill contained language requiring voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections. Democrats described the provision as a “poison pill,” arguing that it could make it harder for eligible voters to participate in federal elections.
That combination of provisions became a central reason Democrats opposed moving forward with the legislation.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer criticized the bill before the vote, arguing that Republicans were using the legislation for political purposes rather than pursuing a complete congressional stock-trading ban. CBS News reported that Schumer called the proposal ineffective and said Democrats supported a broader prohibition.
Republicans, meanwhile, framed the vote as a missed opportunity to impose restrictions on lawmakers’ ability to profit from stock investments while serving in Congress.
Ricketts said after the vote that Democrats had blocked his bill despite its restrictions on congressional stock trading. His office also noted that the legislation had been passed by the House with bipartisan support.
The debate comes amid longstanding scrutiny over members of Congress buying and selling stocks while also voting on legislation that could affect particular industries or companies.
Reuters reported that lawmakers have faced continued public criticism over stock trades because members of Congress have access to information through their legislative work that may not be available to the general public. The issue has become a recurring subject of congressional ethics debates and proposals for tighter restrictions.
Cornyn has previously backed restrictions on congressional stock trading. When he cosponsored the Stop Insider Trading Act in March, he said lawmakers using information unavailable to the public to profit from stock transactions harms public trust in government.
The Texas senator’s latest comments place him among Republicans using the Senate vote to criticize Democrats over the issue.
The White House also criticized Senate Democrats after the vote, saying the party had voted against the Stop Insider Trading Act. The administration has previously backed restrictions preventing members of Congress from using insider information for personal financial gain.
Roll Call reported that the 53-47 vote effectively stopped the bill from moving forward before senators left Washington ahead of the November midterm elections. The legislation had already cleared the House but could not overcome the Senate’s 60-vote threshold.
The vote also gave Republicans another issue to emphasize as the midterm campaign enters its final stretch, particularly as lawmakers from both parties continue to face questions about whether members of Congress should be allowed to trade individual stocks while serving in office.
For Cornyn, the Senate’s rejection of the measure represents a failure to act on legislation he argues would increase transparency and accountability for members of Congress.
His Sept. 30 post focused on that argument, accusing Democrats of blocking legislation aimed at congressional stock trading while saying they claim to oppose corruption and insider trading.
The disagreement, however, extends beyond whether Congress should restrict lawmakers’ stock purchases. Democrats have argued that the Republican bill was incomplete and objected to the voter identification provisions attached to it, while Republicans have characterized the vote as a refusal to advance restrictions on congressional stock trading.
The Senate vote leaves the proposed Stop Insider Trading Act stalled unless lawmakers revisit the issue in future legislation.
