Mike Johnson says lawmakers should be able to continue owning stocksNEWS | 04 December 2025The speaker of the House said earlier this year that he was supportive of a stock trading ban.
The speaker of the House said earlier this year that he was supportive of a stock trading ban. Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images
The speaker of the House said earlier this year that he was supportive of a stock trading ban. Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images
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House Speaker Mike Johnson appears to be pumping the brakes on efforts to ban lawmakers from trading stocks.
Johnson told Punchbowl News on Wednesday that lawmakers should still be able to own stocks, suggesting that barring them from doing so could discourage people from running for Congress.
"You don't want another deterrence for good people running for office," Johnson told the outlet.
The speaker said that he opposes "people cheating the system and abusing their office" but that "there's probably a way to do that that still allows for lawful conduct by members."
Earlier this year, Johnson had expressed support for a Congressional stock trading ban.
"I'm in favor of that, because I don't think we should have any appearance of impropriety," Johnson said at the time.
The speaker's comments come amid a push by Republican Reps. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida and Tim Burchett of Tennessee to force a vote on a bill to ban members of Congress from trading stocks.
That bill, which was drafted by a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers, would require sitting members of Congress to sell off individual stock holdings within 180 days of the bill's enactment, while newly elected lawmakers would have 90 days to do so.
The ban would also apply to lawmakers' spouses and dependent children. Lawmakers and their families would still be able to invest in widely held funds such as mutual funds and ETFs.
Luna and Burchett are using what's known as a "discharge petition," which triggers a vote on a bill if 218 or more members of the House sign on — even if the speaker is opposed. It is unclear whether they will reach that number, and Johnson predicted that they would not.
"You need to let the process play out," Johnson told Punchbowl. "And there's a lot of good people working on this, and we'll come to something that will satisfy everybody, but you got to let that happen."
Democrats have largely embraced the idea of banning lawmakers from trading stocks.
At a press conference on Monday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said that Democrats "overwhelmingly support a ban on congressional stock trading" but that given GOP opposition, that may have to wait until after Democrats retake the House.Author: Never Miss A Story. Bryan Metzger. Enter Your Email. Follow Authors. Source
