WRAL: “[Cooper] contrasted himself with his Republican opponent, Michael Whatley, who owns hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of stocks [in] companies, […] Duke Energy, lots of oil and gas companies.”
RALEIGH – New reporting from WRAL spotlights DC insider and Big Oil and utility company lobbyist Michael Whatley’s self-enrichment as Roy Cooper continues to champion a congressional stock trading ban.
To date, Whatley has been exposed for pushing policies that raise prices on North Carolina families, seniors and disaster victims while boosting his own Big Oil, Big Pharma, Duke Energy and stocks in private companies tied to the flood insurance market.
Roy does not own or trade individual stocks, supports a ban on congressional stock trading and has committed to not becoming a lobbyist after leaving office, standing in stark contrast with Whatley’s “case study in revolving-door politics” career as a DC lobbyist.
WRAL [On the Record]: Should Congress trade stocks? Where NC’s politicians stand, and how much they trade
- Will Doran: “When Roy Cooper announced his campaign for U.S. Senate, to replace Thom Tillis, who’s gone, the very first thing that he said, you know, he would support, if he [is] elected [to the] Senate, was this sort of stock trading ban. […] He didn’t own any stocks, you know he said he’s never owned any [individual] stocks throughout his time as governor because even though it’s not banned in North Carolina, he just didn’t think it was the right thing to do.”
- Will Doran: “And he kind of contrasted himself with his Republican opponent, Michael Whatley, who owns hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of stocks and companies, mostly in the energy sphere, Duke Energy, lots of oil and gas companies. He worked in that field as a lobbyist for a long time. […] Whatley, for a couple of months, would not respond to my request for comment on whether or not he would support a ban on stock trading.”
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