Why the latest effort to ban stock trading in Congress is falling flat

A GOP congresswoman is trying to force a vote on a bill to ban stock trading in Congress. Dozens of members of Congress have already signed onto her effort. But leaders in both parties are coming up with their own proposals, likely dooming the effort. Dozens of members of Congress have signed onto an effort to force a House vote on a bipartisan bill to ban lawmakers from trading stocks. It's increasingly likely that the effort will fail. The reason? Top Democrats are now insisting that President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance also be included in the ban - a move that will likely dampen GOP support for the idea. It's something of a repeat of what happened in July in the Senate, when Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri struck a deal with Democrats to advance a stock trading ban that would include Trump and Vance. That move drew the ire of some Republicans who've previously supported banning stock trading in Congress, along with Trump himself, who went on to savage Hawley as "second-tier" in a Truth Social post. Democrats are now putting forth their own stock trading ban proposal to compete with the existing bipartisan bill. Republicans are also planning to roll out their own plan early next year. Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette, acting vice president of policy and government affairs at the Project On Government Oversight, had been working with lawmakers on the bipartisan bill. He told Business Insider that Democrats' maneuver would significantly lower the likelihood that a stock trading ban gets passed this Congress. "I think we had a real path, and I think intentionally, this effort from Democratic leadership has really undercut that path," Hedtler-Gaudette said. "Everyone's going to be basically retreating into their partisan corners now." 'I don't think you should go down the discharge petition route' Earlier this year, a bipartisan group of House members who've been working on legislation to ban stock trading for years came together and introduced the Restore Trust in Congress Act , which would force lawmakers to sell off their individual stock holdings within 180 days after the bill's enactment. That group was led by Democratic Rep. Seth Magaziner of Rhode Island and Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas and included several other lawmakers who've been outspoken for a stock trading ban, such as Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York. In December, Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida moved to force a vote on that bill by filing what's known as a "discharge petition." That measure, which lawmakers have deployed with increasing success in recent weeks, forces the House to a vote on a bill if 218 lawmakers sign on - even if the speaker is opposed. As of publication, 15 Republicans and 59 Democrats have signed onto Luna's discharge petition. There are some issues with Luna's effort. Democrats have complained that Luna's resolution can't be amended, and she moved to introduce the measure before other stock trading ban proponents were ready. "I appreciate that...

Preview: ~500 words