SODOM & GOMORRAH: Corruption is a problem for every government. Loopholes that allow it to be legally allowed should be changed.
CBS correspondent Steve Kroft reported that insider trading in Congress appears to be perfectly legal. Peter Schweizer from the Hoover Institution told Kroft that insider trading is an “honest graft” that Congressional leaders can use to become more wealthy while in office. Schweizer calls it immoral but says that insider trading laws do not apply to the elites in Congress.
Citing Congressman Spencer Bachus’ bet that there would be financial turmoil in 2008, Schweizer and Kroft point out that politicians are privy to very sensitive economic information that could be used to profit themselves. This issue is not unique to Congress; some of us still remember President Barack Obama’s Bank of America tip to Warren Buffett.
This is the product of a few things. First, it’s the product of a general air of corruption in government. The Greeks told us that tyranny is when the public is ruled according to private interest and not for the good of everyone. Second, the government is far too involved in economic issues. If meetings where sensitive economic information was discussed simply stopped happening, political insider trading would be impossible.