AzureTyger
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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From the Washington Post:
The Office of Congressional Ethics is investigating the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee over possible violations of insider-trading laws, according to individuals familiar with the case.
Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), who holds one of the most influential positions in the House, has been a frequent trader on Capitol Hill, buying stock options while overseeing the nation’s banking and financial services industries.
The Office of Congressional Ethics, an independent investigative agency, opened its probe late last year after focusing on numerous suspicious trades on Bachus’s annual financial disclosure forms, the individuals said. OCE investigators have notified Bachus that he is under investigation and that they have found probable cause to believe insider-trading violations have occurred.
The case is the first of its kind involving a member of Congress. It comes at a time of intense public scrutiny of congressional ethics, with the House passing legislation Thursday to tighten rules against insider trading by lawmakers. The impetus for the legislation, a version of which passed in the Senate a week earlier, came from a “60 Minutes†report and a book mentioning Bachus’s trades, “Throw Them All Out,†by Peter Schweizer.
The only way to start fixing our crappy government is to crack down on the financial incentives for members.
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Grymlo
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Crack down on one you might as well crack down on them all. 
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Ashmaele
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Saw this on a poker forum (he's been instrumental in keeping regulated internet poker out of the US). I predict that absolutely nothing will come of this.
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Sansfear
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Considering that it wasn't even illegal for them to do this until recently, what exactly is he being charged with?
http://www.kpho.com/story/16050846/insider-trading-legal-in-congress
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Ashmaele
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Sansfear posted:
Considering that it wasn't even illegal for them to do this until recently, what exactly is he being charged with?
http://www.kpho.com/story/16050846/insider-trading-legal-in-congress
Pastor, Flake and McCain said they have not made money off privileged information.
Pastor said he would support a bill that bans the practice, while Flake and McCain said they would consider it.
lol?
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Scarne
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Sansfear posted:
Considering that it wasn't even illegal for them to do this until recently, what exactly is he being charged with?
http://www.kpho.com/story/16050846/insider-trading-legal-in-congress
Ethics violations, not breaking the law. 
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imaloon1
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Ethics violations don't have to mean you did anything illegal. Ask Newt.
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Yukishiro1
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Well, it's the ethics office of congress. My understanding is that it is (was) legal for congress to inside trade but it still violates congressional ethics rules.
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theredkay1
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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An enterprising prosecutor could certainly make a good case that it was illegal before the recent legislation was passed.
I dont quite understand the assumption that congress is exempt from this rule. It seems to be Congressmen saying 'we havent been prosecuted before, therefore we are exempt.' The law is very broad and there is no reason to think that congress is exempt just because nobody has prosecuted them in the past.
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MayorShade
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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What a crap story. If he was engaged in "insider trading", he was doing it wrong.
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Yukishiro1
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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theredkay1 posted:
I dont quite understand the assumption that congress is exempt from this rule. It seems to be Congressmen saying 'we havent been prosecuted before, therefore we are exempt.' The law is very broad and there is no reason to think that congress is exempt just because nobody has prosecuted them in the past.
I thought there was a specific exemption for Congresspeople who got their insider information from their job.
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Thugoneous
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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The book that pointed this out dropped a lot more names than his. I wonder why he's being singled out.
Also I hope he's tossed out miserable scum bag.
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Taliesihne
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Thugoneous posted:
The book that pointed this out dropped a lot more names than his. I wonder why he's being singled out.
Also I hope he's tossed out miserable scum bag.
Probably has something do with his committee chair.
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Eager_Igraine
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Taliesihne posted:
Thugoneous posted:
The book that pointed this out dropped a lot more names than his. I wonder why he's being singled out.
Also I hope he's tossed out miserable scum bag.
Probably has something do with his committee chair.
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theredkay1
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Subject:
Office of Congrssional Ethics launches investigation of Rep. Spencer Bachus (R) over insider trading
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Yukishiro1 posted:
theredkay1 posted:
I dont quite understand the assumption that congress is exempt from this rule. It seems to be Congressmen saying 'we havent been prosecuted before, therefore we are exempt.' The law is very broad and there is no reason to think that congress is exempt just because nobody has prosecuted them in the past.
I thought there was a specific exemption for Congresspeople who got their insider information from their job.
I thought so too when the story first broke a few months ago and it surprised me....
But the actual insider trading law is very vague. It basically says you cant buy/sell based on fraud or deception. The courts have interpreted that having non-public information and acting on it constitutes fraud....you are defrauding the person on the other side of the transaction.
There is no law that exempts congress from fraud.
current head of the SEC posted:
The general legal principles described above apply to all trading within the scope of Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5. There is no reason why trading by Members of Congress or their staff members would be considered “exempt†from the federal securities laws, including the insider trading prohibitions, though the application of these principles to such trading, particularly in the case of Members of Congress, is without direct precedent and may present some unique issues.
http://newsroom-magazine.com/2011/government-agencies/sec/sec-enforcement-chief-tells-senate-congress-not-exempt-from-insider-trading-law/
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