Following a 60 Minutes report alleging that lawmakers have benefited financially from using privileged information from the industry’s the regulate, Presidential hopeful Rick Perry is pushing to outlaw insider trading among members of Congress.
“Any Congressman or Senator who uses their insider knowledge to profit the stock Market ought to be sent to jail,” Perry said in a campaign video released online Monday. “Congress ought to pass a law that says so right now.”
The 60 Minutes segment specifically named House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), the chairman of the Financial Services Committee.
In a campaign speech in Iowa, Perry took the message even further, saying that Washington’s culture needs a “complete overhaul,” including slashing Congressional salaries by half, limiting Supreme Court appointments to 18 years and mandating a balanced budget.