You're watching...
Washington Post staff writer Kimberly Kindy and University of Minnesota Law Professor Richard Painter on members of Congress reportedly making changes...
Also in this playlist...
Auto-advance: ON
Auto-advance
This transcript is automatically generated
So our first story they shocked me when I read -- I've got to tell you I its most definitely a case of government gone wild.
More than a 130 members of congress quickly adjusted their portfolios.
Within hours of getting critical information from the treasury or other officials.
Insider trading and didn't we take care this problem.
Kimberly -- wrote this article for the Washington Post and Richard painter was the chief ethics lawyer for president George W.
Bush thanks to both of you for joining us.
They haven't -- -- I would start with you the most shocking thing you've found in this story the most egregious example.
Well.
I wouldn't say that there is any one person that stood out -- what we really tried to show was that by eight by eight showing you what.
What took place after there were conversations were Paulson what members -- being really the story is to is to point now.
-- on its members of congress can do that you can't do.
Essentially they can be on the phone with the Treasury Secretary as the world as a financial crisis erupts.
And have access to hand and then.
Get off the phone or -- even meeting and it just their financial portfolios.
Now of course they all told us.
That there was no information passed on to them that they being used to make those adjustments.
But there is that intersection and that is something that there are permitted to do.
Yeah that you outlined examples where -- John Boehner was meeting on Capitol Hill with other leaders about the potential stimulus package before any of us knew about it.
On June 23 2008.
He moved somewhere between fifty and 100000 dollars to safer investment the very next day they came out and they made the announcement about the stimulus plan.
-- also you know -- about senator Kent Conrad on August 13 he had a call with Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson.
And the very next day he went in shifted as much as 250000.
Dollars.
-- money -- retirement find moving too much safer investments fearing what was coming.
I I wonder Richard let me ask you you know insider trading is access to material nonpublic information do you think anything in this article crosses that line.
Well I'd have to know more facts to know whether the entire trading laws were violated but the laws apply to members of congress.
As they do to other individuals and on day if you trade on the basis of material.
Nonpublic information that you've obtained from.
Anyone in breach of a relationship of trust and confidence.
You go to jail and that includes a relationship of trust and confidence with the United States government that includes confidential meetings with the Treasury Department.
So Richard you know -- if if Kent Conrad had a conversation with Hank Paulson.
What it was the Treasury Secretary what would have had to have gone on in that conversation.
To make it insider trading.
There would have to be a non public information communicated to him in a relationship of trust and confidence which they're almost certainly was.
And that information.
Would have to be information that a reasonable investor.
It would consider important in making the particular trade that he may yeah and in that situation he would be in violation of the federal insider trading laws but all of those elements would have --
