T
he news of how a group
of people on Reddit used
shares of GameStop to
outmatch a Wall Street hedge fund
has not only captured national
attention but has also started an
ethics conversation about hedge
funds and the stock market.
However, private citizens are not
the only ones using questionable
strategies to make money in
stocks. Over the past few years,
this issue has gained widespread
attention due to a number of
lawmakers who have engaged
in ethically dubious trades.
This has raised significant
concerns
among
watchdog
groups and the general public
and has led to calls for greater
regulation of stock trading
among members of Congress.
For many years, there was no
law explicitly preventing members
of Congress from trading on
congressional knowledge. Members
of Congress could use privileged, and
therefore asymmetric, information
that they received to influence
their stock trades. Finally, in 2012,
Congress passed the Stop Trading
on
Congressional
Knowledge
Act, which prohibits members of
Congress from using information
that is not available to the public to
influence their stock market trading.
While
this
act
was
an
important first step in addressing
this issue, it did not go far enough,
as demonstrated by the actions
of many lawmakers recently.
In February 2020, Congress
received a briefing that outlined
the severe threat of COVID-19
on the country and the economy.
Following this briefing, multiple
elected
officials,
including
former Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga.,
made a series of controversial
stock trades. Loeffler sold large
stock holdings only days before
the market had a large downturn
due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
She also went a step further
by investing in teleworking
software, a field that became
much more profitable during
the pandemic.
Not only did Loeffler make
these
controversial
stock
purchases but so did members of
her family, including her husband,
who is the president of the New
York Stock Exchange. He bought
many stocks in industries that
would
soon
boom
following
the passage of the then-secret
Coronavirus
Aid,
Relief
and
Economic Security Act.
Former Sen. David Perdue,
R-Ga., also has an eyebrow-
raising stock profile. In his six
years in the Senate, Perdue
made 2,596 stock trades. Many
of these trades were of stocks of
companies that fell under the
purview of the committees that
he sat on, such as the Senate
Banking
Committee.
Having
a
senator
holding
stock
in
companies that they oversee as a
member of a related committee is
a major concern.
The stock purchases by Perdue
and Loeffler were flagged and
investigated by the Department
of Justice and the Securities and
Exchange Committee. However,
the
cases
were
eventually
dismissed, which is par for the
course. Since the passage of
the STOCK Act, no members of
Congress have been prosecuted
for using insider information on
stock purchases.
While the passage of the
STOCK Act was an important
first step, the law is far too
lenient to be effective. If we want
to address the issue of members
of Congress using their position
and private information to enrich
themselves through the stock
market, there needs to be a more
rigorous
and
comprehensive
law put into place. There is
a bipartisan bill called the
Transparent
Representation
Upholding Service and Trust
Act that would do just this. This
bill would require members of
Congress and their families to
put their stocks in a blind trust,
where a person has no control or
knowledge of the assets or how
they’re being managed.
Having members of Congress
put their stocks in blind trusts
would help to eliminate the issue
of insider trading by our elected
officials and promote greater
trust in our legislative branch.
There is much that we can do to
help address this issue. You can
advocate for stricter regulations
with your elected officials. You
can also hold your representatives
accountable at the ballot box.
This year in the Georgia Senate
special election, Sens. Perdue
and Loeffler were both assailed
over their stock purchases by
their Democratic counterparts.
The election of Sens. Raphael
Warnock, D-Ga., and Jon Ossoff,
D-Ga, shows how voters have
the power to hold members of
Congress accountable for their
misuse of private information in
the stock market.
Our government should work
for us. We must all do what we
can to hold our representatives
accountable and ensure that
our representatives serve us
and not their own financial
interests.
L
ate
last
year,
news
broke of the COVID-19
B.1.1.7 variant reaching
the United States, specifically
Colorado.
Much
like
last
March, when the news was
reported that the coronavirus
had arrived in the U.S., panic
and uncertainty quickly spread
throughout the country. Now,
nearly a month after the initial
detection of the novel variant,
over 600 domestic cases of
B.1.1.7 have been reported by
the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention; 13 cases are
here in Washtenaw County.
The
county
health
department’s response to this: all
University of Michigan students
currently residing in Ann Arbor
should “stay in place,” including
not traveling within or out of
the county, for two weeks. The
Biden administration has also
taken action, deploying country-
wide travel restrictions on those
coming from countries that are
heavily populated with new and
potentially dangerous variants,
including Brazil, Ireland, the
United Kingdom and South
Africa. However, there is a
problematic exception to that
ban: American citizens are still
welcome back, even if they have
traveled to those destinations.
Although
likely
well-
intentioned,
these
travel
restrictions are heavily flawed
in their design.
As
we
have
seen
an
unfortunate number of times
— over 26 million, to be exact
— over the last few months,
the virus does not care one bit
about
citizenship.
Traveling
to a location where the virus,
especially a highly contagious
variant of it, is rampant (or
even just present) is a near-
perfect recipe for contracting
it. Thus, excluding those that
have traveled to these countries
from travel restrictions simply
because their legal documents
read “U.S. citizen” is illogical.
These Americans can and likely
will contract the disease, too.
Although
not
a
perfect
analogy,
when
Washtenaw
County announced its stay-
at-home recommendation last
week, they did not say Ann
Arbor citizens could be excused,
as doing so would be ineffective.
The same should be expected
from U.S. citizens on both a
larger and more exhaustive
scale. A strict quarantine, not
simply an advisory to do so,
should be mandatory for these
individuals should they wish to
return.
The U.S. has been struggling
with this concept since well
before
President
Joe
Biden
took
office.
Look
back
to
Thanksgiving
or
Christmas,
only a few months ago, for
example.
Despite
repeated
advisories from the CDC to avoid
travel, strict restrictions were
not enacted and consequently,
Americans traveled during the
holidays in mass numbers. In
the days and weeks following
Thanksgiving this year, daily
hospitalizations reached over
100,000 and daily deaths were at
about 3,000. Experts, including
Dr. Anthony Fauci, note that
this was likely a direct result
of the influx of travel around
the holiday.
What is potentially even more
troubling about this data is that
most of the holiday travel was
domestic. International travel
thus proposes a whole new
concern, if those other countries
are
experiencing
problems
with increased cases due to
the novel variant. Travel for
anyone during a pandemic will
inevitably lead to a distribution
of cases, including if it is
international.
This
evaluation
is
not
to say that Biden and his
administration are not on the
right track, but rather that
they need to go full force
with the ban, or at the very
least with the conditions they
impose on returning.
Canadian
Prime
Minister
Justin
Trudeau
seems
to
understand the need for harsh
limitations, announcing earlier
this week a much stricter set
of restrictions. Upon arrival,
travelers to our neighbor to the
north must begin quarantine
in a hotel, in addition to
adhering
to
protocols
for
in-airport
and
pre-boarding
PCR testing. Additionally, the
destinations within the country
for international travel have
been restricted to four cities, in
attempts to limit the points of
entry for those with the virus.
The U.S. should do the same,
plain and simple.
Australia is even stricter.
Among other policies, most
notably, all arrivals to the
country
have
a
mandatory
two-week
hotel
quarantine.
After recording their first case
in months this Sunday, the
country promptly put the city
of Perth under a comprehensive
lockdown.
Of
course
one
must account for population
differences but, for perspective,
the U.S. is averaging at least
100,000 cases daily.
Imposing
similarly
strict
travel restrictions, especially in
the wake of a concerning new
virus variant, could dwindle that
figure significantly. It seems
that for all countries that enact
stricter policies like these, cases
seem to be consistently down — I
doubt this is coincidental.
Enacting more comprehensive
policies is going to anger a lot
of people. The pandemic has
been tiring, fatal and strenuous
and the last thing many want,
especially those who have yet to
grapple with or see the severity
of the virus themselves, is more
or stricter restrictions.
Unfortunately, though, until
vaccines are fully distributed,
restrictions are needed. Biden
and his team cannot skimp
out on how they impose them.
Otherwise, we could soon be
seeing yet another resurgence,
this time with variants that
could be doing more damage
than the first one.
11 — Wednesday, February 10, 2021
Opinion
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
“This evaluation
is not to say that
Biden and his
administration are
not on the right
track, but rather
that they need to
go full force with
the ban, or at the
very least with
the conditions
they impose on
returning. ”
BRITTANY BOWMAN
Managing Editor
Stanford Lipsey Student Publications Building
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
tothedaily@michigandaily.com
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890.
CLAIRE HAO
Editor in Chief
ELIZABETH COOK
AND JOEL WEINER
Editorial Page Editors
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of The Daily’s Editorial Board.
All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
Zack Blumberg
Brittany Bowman
Emily Considine
Elizabeth Cook
Jess D’Agostino
Andrew Gerace
Jack Grieve
Krystal Hur
Min Soo Kim
Zoe Phillips
Mary Rolfes
Gabrijela Skoko
Elayna Swift
Joel Weiner
Erin White
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
John Tumpowsky can be reached at
jgtump@umich.edu.
Isabelle Schindler can be reached at
ischind@umich.edu.
JOHN TUMPOWSKY | COLUMNIST
ISABELLE SCHINDLER | COLUMNIST
Travel restrictions only work if
they are thorough, Joe
Keep Congress out of the stock market
From The Daily: America needs
ambitious policy. The Democrats
have to deliver.
As such, the Democrats need to
be strategic with their legislative
focus and get to work immediately.
Wasting time on minute aspects
of bills that the general public
does not understand, as the
Obama administration did with
its economic relief measure, will
cost them their positions. Biden
must spearhead policy that is
effective and has clear, tangible
results for Democrats to have any
hope of successfully maintaining a
majority through the midterms.
Before beginning a conversation
on the policies that will be crucial
for
the
Biden
administration
to push, it is important to note
the likely disastrous role of the
filibuster
in
preventing
the
Senate Democrats from passing
legislation.
Recently, Biden has refrained
from taking a strong stance on the
filibuster — the popular Senate
stalling strategy — and suspicions
are arising among some Democrats
that
he
may
be
a
stronger
supporter of the filibuster than
they wish. In an ideal America,
where bipartisanship flourishes
flawlessly
and
democracy
is
perfectly embodied, Biden’s desire
to negotiate and work with the
Republicans without the removal
of the filibuster might be a reality.
But neither of the above exists in
2021. If Biden fails to acknowledge
that truth, then he can wave
goodbye to any legislative plans for
the coming months. His pursuit of
political compromise is noble and
admirable, but it is naive to think
Republicans will agree to most
aspects of a Democratic agenda.
Simply
put,
Biden
needs
to end the filibuster for any
progress to be made.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch
McConnell, R-Ky., recognizes the
power of the filibuster and the
harm that outlawing it could have
on his party’s role in politics in
the coming years, noting just
before
Biden’s
inauguration
that he planned to present an
ultimatum to Majority Senate
Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.,
and the Democrats.
His warning: Keep the filibuster,
or expect a lack of cooperation.
Since then, following reassurance
from a few Democratic senators
that they would not endorse
removing the filibuster, McConnell
has calmed his stance.
Reformed health care, climate
initiatives, economic restoration
and much more are all crucial
to the Biden agenda and are
desperately needed by Americans
living in a post-Trump United
States. The filibuster can easily
block all of them.
At the moment, Biden’s plan
of attack seems to be through
executive orders, as both Donald
Trump and Barack Obama did
before him. But if the Republicans
re-secure the presidency, any
executive orders can be reversed.
It happened with Trump, who
quickly moved to dismantle many
of Obama’s orders, and is now
happening with Biden, who plans
to do the same to Trump’s. For this
reason, Biden and the Democrats
cannot shy away from pushing
their agenda in Congress by
passing
laws,
arguably
the
most legitimate form of the
legislative process.
It is inevitable that Biden will
face the destructive power of the
filibuster in his policy plans. It is
simply a matter of if he is willing to
dismantle it or not.
Apart from the set of usual
responsibilities
faced
by
U.S.
presidents,
the
Biden-Harris
administration has inherited a
number of challenges this term
unseen by prior administrations.
In tackling them, we hope they
enact policies that fully address the
urgency of the pandemic while also
working toward solving long-term
issues like protecting Americans
from further economic turmoil.
In addition to mitigating the
spread of COVID-19, Biden and
Harris should also seek economic
stability for all.
With
15,536
lives
lost
in
Michigan and more than 400,000
dead in the U.S., coupled with a
stunted economy and persistently
high unemployment, the weight of
each signature during these first
100 days remains heavy. A poorly
balanced response could lead to an
additional 200,000 deaths in the
U.S. alone.
The
Biden-Harris
plan
to
beat COVID-19 is bold. But is
it enough? With a seven-point
strategy that values science, seeks
the
re-harnessing
of
national
cooperation
and
emphasizes
accessibility and inclusivity, our
nation’s future is more hopeful
than it was before this transition of
power. With specific goals, such as
vaccinating 100 million in the first
100 days, bringing down COVID-
related costs and barriers and
working to rebuild transparency
and public trust in scientific
institutions, the Biden-Harris plan
has the potential to set America
on the right track. Experts warn,
however, that the plan may be
lacking when it comes to funding,
staffing and procedures regarding
the new COVID-19 variant, SARS-
CoV-2 B.1.1.7.
While
the
Biden-Harris
administration
is
primarily
responsible for enacting their
seven-point strategy to address
COVID-19, we must be equally
committed to doing the work
as a community. In Ann Arbor
and Washtenaw County, if we
want to save lives in our own
neighborhoods, we must remain
committed to recommendations
made by public health experts, like
wearing well-fitted masks outside
of our households and following
all guidelines from the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention.
This pandemic will not go away
on its own. Following mandates,
enforcing travel restrictions and
implementing
common-sense
economic
measures
will
be
equally important up until day
101 and thereafter. Without
follow-through
from
every
community in the U.S. and a
sense of personal responsibility,
the advances made by Biden’s
administration will falter.
Though we only sit at the tip
of the iceberg that will inevitably
consume 2021, November 2022
and the midterm elections are just
around the corner. The best way
for Democrats to retain control of
Congress in the 2022 midterms
will be to govern like McConnell.
That is: viciously, obstinately and
without tolerance for dissent
on important issues like the
minimum wage or the filibuster
— we are looking at you, Sen. Joe
Manchin, D-W.Va.
From
a
purely
electoral
angle, one critique of the Obama
administration is that former
President Obama governed in the
long term. Yes, the Affordable
Care Act proved to be a relatively
popular piece of legislation in
the long run, but in the short
term, this nearly 2,500-page law
did little to improve the electoral
odds for Democrats during the
2010 midterms.
Democrats’
failure
to
pass
visible policies that benefited their
core supporters arguably led to
Republicans taking the House in
2010. Obama had much to show
for his work, but most of it was too
indirect to compel voters.
In contrast to the Obama
administration,
the
Biden
administration should focus first on
the short term. Biden should push
through those ambitious policies
which will garner immediate
approval from the public. An
immediate, rapid-fire approach
is the only type of administration
that Biden can afford to have,
because maintaining a governing
coalition after 2022 is by no means
guaranteed. Some examples of
ambitious measures that have
broad public support include a
$15 minimum wage, marijuana
legalization at the federal level and
expanding government-sponsored
health care plans.
Outside of policy, as Democrats
move into 2021, they may want
to fortify their messaging —
Republicans certainly will. Take
U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn,
R-N.C., who recently said, “I have
built my staff around comms rather
than legislation.”
Whether Democrats are more
or moderate or progressive, it is
clear that their messaging has
been faulty. Even if Biden delivers
on many of his more ambitious
campaign promises, it will be
useless in the coming elections if
Democrats can’t communicate in
new and effective ways.
For
example,
Secretary
of
Transportation
Pete
Buttigieg
has
made
several
successful
appearances on Fox News, a
notably conservative network.
This could signal a welcome
change
in
how
Democrats
conduct their messaging for the
coming election cycle.
Democrats are not faced with
the decision of either keeping
control of Congress or passing
ambitious policies. Those goals
are one and the same. If Joe Biden
wants to be a successful president,
the only path that he can follow
is one of aggressive action, be
it on the COVID-19 pandemic,
the dysfunction in our economy
or in wrangling a grid-locked
government.
THE MICHIGAN DAILY EDITORIAL BOARD
W
ith the election of President Joe Biden and Sens. Raphael
Warnock, D-Ga., and Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., Democrats now
have control of the presidency, the House and the Senate for
the first time in 10 years. But their majority is slim, and their control of
Congress will likely end in two years, following the 2022 midterm elections.