RALEIGH, NC – Today, Roy Cooper released the following statement in support of a ban on trading of individual stocks for members of Congress and top Executive Branch officials. This comes as Congress recently held a hearing on banning member stock trading and as efforts to ban member stock trading receive increasing support from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers in recent months.
“A lot of people just don’t trust Washington politicians. That’s because too many of them look after themselves, and not the people they’re supposed to serve,” said Roy Cooper. “But leaders are elected to serve the people they represent, not to trade a company’s stock on insider knowledge to get rich. It’s past time to ban individual stock trading for members of Congress and top Executive Branch officials. To regain trust in Washington, public servants can’t just say ‘trust me,’ they have to show they can be trusted, which is why I won’t own or trade any individual stocks as a candidate or when I become a U.S. Senator regardless of whether a ban is passed.”
Governor Cooper did not own or trade individual stocks during his eight years as Governor of North Carolina. He also worked to advance transparency and trust in government throughout his career, including by recovering millions in Medicaid fraud and fighting to give investigators and prosecutors the resources they need to fight public corruption.
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