"Congress’ stock trades became a hot topic after several members of Congress were revealed to have sold or bought shares last February and March after receiving private briefings on the seriousness of the then-looming coronavirus threat. The transactions revealed how lawmakers can use their access to information for personal gain, as well as how the lawmaking process could be corrupted due to the conflicts of interest members’ stock investments pose.

In the wake of those scandals, there’s been a growing movement—inside and outside of Congress—toward wanting to prohibit members of Congress and spouses with whom they share money from trading corporate stocks. Bills have been proposed in both chambers to address the issue, including proposals that would make members divest from corporate securities and others that would require such assets be held in blind trusts."