Head of House Financial Services Under Investigation for Insider Trading - East Idaho News
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Head of House Financial Services Under Investigation for Insider Trading

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P 021012 SpencerBachus?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1328866034969Bachus [dot] House [dot] gov(WASHINGTON) — Just hours after the House passed a bill to stop lawmakers from profiting from inside knowledge that can make them rich through stock buys, The Washington Post reports Friday that Republican Spencer Bachus of Alabama is now being investigated by the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE).

According to the Post, the OCE, an independent body that can make recommendations to the House Ethics Committee, is questioning trades Bachus listed on his annual financial disclose form.

Specifically, the agency wants to know more about Bachus’ trades that were linked to announcements made by the government and industries under his oversight as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee.

There has been no recent instance of any member of Congress getting nailed for insider trading, although a CBS 60 Minutes piece from last November cast aspersions on Speaker John Boehner, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Bachus, who all denied they profited from inside knowledge.

The Post reports that Bachus’ investments were not stock purchases but options so that the lawmaker could buy or sell certain stocks in the future.

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