It is alleged that members of Congress - some examples given were Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Speaker of the House Boehner - made some tidy sums of money from their trades. These trades were impossible for those without inside information to make for such profits. Hence, the ethical violations. The point the author made was that technically, this behavior is not illegal.
Though the number of Democrats is alleged to be much higher than Republicans who made such trades, in usual dinosaur media fashion the show only concentrated on the Republicans involved, except for Pelosi. No fair and balanced pretense at CBS News.
Members of Congress can legally make trades on non-public information they obtain during their official duties, CBS News' '60 Minutes' reported on Sunday night.
Branded 'honest graft,' lawmakers can use market-moving information that they learn in congressional committees to trade on the stock market — actions that likely would carry stiff jail and civil penalties if they did not hold public office.
"This is a venture opportunity," Schweizer told '60 Minutes.' "This is an opportunity to leverage your position in public service and use that position to enrich yourself, your friends, and your family."
It is particularly troubling that members of Congress would profit during the economic downturn experienced by our country in recent years.
Rick Perry, GOP primary presidential candidate, responds to the Congressional insider trading story:
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