Free Throw Them All Out by Peter Schweizer Page A

European Union deemed that insider trading laws for member states needed to meet a minimum floor. The EU said explicitly that insider trading meant trading on private information obtained "by virtue of the exercise of [one's] employment, profession, or duties." It specifically included "members of the central bank, the press, the parliament, the ministry of economics and of other institutions, committees and bodies who may possess inside information because of their profession or their duties." 7
    It would be difficult to apply the European standard here because in the United States there is no statutory definition of insider trading; it has been defined by our courts over time. I'm not one to adopt a law simply because some other country has it, but clearly the British and the Europeans are on to something: sensitive insider information means not just advance warning of a corporate announcement. It can also mean a key piece of legislation that will affect the stock price of a company. And if a legislator trades on this information, or shares it with someone else who trades on this information, he should face possible legal sanctions.
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Conflict of Interest
    The U.S. Supreme Court recognized decades ago "that an impairment of impartial judgment can occur in even the most well-meaning men when their personal economic interests are affected by the business they transact on behalf of the government." 8 All of us, if we are part of any sort of organized commercial enterprise, need to abide by conflict-of-interest laws.
    As we've seen, this applies at the local, county, and state levels. Recently a city councilman in Sparks, Nevada, was censured by his state because he cast a vote in favor of a casino project that involved his campaign manager. He sued, claiming that he had a First Amendment right to vote on the matter. The Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision, denied his argument and found that conflict-of-interest laws were constitutional. Justice Antonin Scalia, writing for the court, said that conflict-of-interest rules "have been commonplace for over 200 years." He went on to note that when a public official votes, it "is not personal to the legislator but belongs to the people. The legislator has no personal right to it." 9
    Some states are going beyond simply censuring officials who have conflict-of-interest dealings. The State of Florida recently convened a statewide grand jury to consider how to deal with public corruption. Among its recommendations: "We also find voting conflicts of interest should be criminally punished ... In essence, the law would tell public officials that they have a fiduciary duty to the public and that they must separate themselves from anything given to them while serving in this fiduciary duty. When a public official has a conflict, he or she should step aside and disclose the conflict. The only benefit the public official should receive is for the public, not for the public official or anyone else." Although Florida has not criminalized conflicts of interest, other states have. 10
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Land Deals
    Why not apply to Congress the same ethical standards faced by members of county councils in most states? If they are asked to vote on a project that will benefit them directly, they must disclose that fact publicly and recuse themselves. Also, as a rule, a politician should not be a party to a land deal involving a campaign contributor. If someone has given an elected official more than $1,000 in campaign contributions, she should be barred from engaging in land deals with the donor.
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Real Disclosure
    The current financial disclosure forms required of politicians offer only a superficial look at finances and possible conflicts of interest. Here's an idea: make the House and Senate subject to the Freedom of Information Act. After all, Congress deemed it necessary that the executive branch be subject to the act. Even the CIA and the National Security Agency fall under its purview. Are