Congressman Tim Burchett didn’t mince words this weekend when he blasted the racket of congressional stock trading, calling the practice “crooked as a dog’s leg” and demanding an end to the backdoor enrichment that so many in Washington treat as normal. His anger echoes what millions of Americans already know: lawmakers who cash in on inside knowledge aren’t serving the public, they’re gaming the system for personal profit.
Burchett has put real muscle behind the rhetoric by sponsoring and pushing legislation to bar members of Congress from trading individual stocks, joining a growing bipartisan chorus fed up with the corruption of public office. Conservatives who preach accountability should be the loudest here — the idea that anyone elected to represent hardworking Americans should be using privileged information to build a fortune is morally indefensible and politically toxic.
This isn’t smoke-and-mirrors; Congressional leaders have already begun drafting the Restore Trust in Congress Act and similar proposals that would force divestment or strict penalties for violations, a commonsense reform after years of scandals and jaw-dropping returns by some lawmakers. The mainstream coverage makes clear the measure would ban trades in individual stocks, allow diversified funds, and impose fines and forfeitures to discourage abuse — the sort of clear, enforceable rules the public expects.
Enough with the selective outrage and theater from both parties. Republicans like Burchett and Luna aren’t grandstanding when they point to egregious examples of officials who turned public service into private profit; voters remember the stories and they’re done tolerating it. If you want to restore confidence in self-government, you start by stopping elected officials from treating Capitol Hill like their personal Wall Street trading desk.
At the same time Washington squabbles about ethics, President Trump showed how leadership works by sitting down with New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani to search for practical solutions on affordability — proving that Republicans can both demand accountability at home and engage productively on issues that matter to Americans. The Oval Office meeting was unusually cordial and focused on housing, food, and the cost-of-living crisis, and conservatives should applaud any effort that puts Americans’ pocketbooks before partisan score-settling.
That said, we should not kid ourselves about the stakes: Mamdani is a democratic socialist whose proposals would saddle taxpayers and stifle the city’s comeback, and his vocal attacks on conservatives show our guard can’t be let down. Building a working relationship with city leaders doesn’t mean surrendering principles; it means pushing for real accountability in New York while insisting federal funds and cooperation come with oversight and common-sense conditions.
If Republicans truly want to win the argument for responsible government, they must turn Burchett’s righteous anger into law — pass a ban, enforce it vigorously, and make sure anyone who breaks the rules pays a real price. The American people are fed up with a Washington that rewards insider dealing while regular citizens pay taxes and take risks; leading the fight to end congressional stock trading is a patriotic, pro-worker cause that conservative lawmakers should own and deliver.
