Socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., made an unexpected move and aligned herself with America First Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-F.L., and others this week.
The two far-Left and far-Right congress members are co-sponsoring a bill aimed at corruption in the U.S. Congress.
Their bill, the Bipartisan Restoring Faith in Government Act, would limit financial investments by members of congress, their spouses, and any of their dependents.
“AOC is wrong a lot. She’d probably say the same thing about me,” Gaetz told Fox News about their unexpected alliance. “But she’s not corrupt.”
“And I will work with anyone and everyone to ensure that Congress is not so compromised,” he said.“We should disallow congressional stock trading for the same reason we don’t allow the referee to bet on the game.”
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., are also co-sponsors of the bipartisan bill.
The move to stop congressmembers and their families from profiting from stocks that regulated by lawmakers has gained momentum in recent years after former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband was accused of using her insider knowledge to make hundreds of millions in profits over the past few decades.
“The ability to individually trade stock erodes the public’s trust in government,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement. “When Members have access to classified information, we should not be trading in the stock market on it. It’s really that simple.”
“Members of Congress are spending their time trading futures instead of securing the future of our fellow Americans,” Gaetz said in a statement. “We cannot allow the Swamp to prioritize investing in stocks over investing in our country.”
The Horn editorial team