In the Navy and at NASA, there were consequences if you didn’t do your job. But that’s not always the case in Washington. If we’re going to get our government back on track, we need to pull the curtain back on what our elected leaders are doing and hold them accountable when they put personal profit over the people they’re meant to serve.

When I was running for Senate in 2019, I made a pledge to publish my Senate schedule online so Arizonans could see how I was working for them. I’m proud to be one of the few members of Congress to regularly publish my schedule. But this commonsense decision shouldn’t be rare — it should be the standard. Constituents should know how their elected leaders are spending their time. That’s why I introduced the Transparency in Congress Resolution, requiring all members of Congress to publish their schedules online. 

Transparency can’t just be a buzzword on the campaign trail — it’s something we have to live by. 

During my first year in the Senate, I saw firsthand how the privileged information senators receive could shape our economy and influence whole industries. No one should be able to use that information to benefit their own stock portfolios. 

So, when I was sworn in as senator, I took another step to ensure Arizonans know that I’m always working for them and them alone — I moved my assets into qualified blind trusts. That means I can’t buy or sell stocks and have no control over those assets. It’s the highest ethical standard. 

There are some who don’t see a problem with members of Congress trading stocks while they have access to sensitive information and want to keep the system the way it is. But I’ve never backed away from a tough fight when there’s so much at stake. So in January, Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia and I introduced the Ban Congressional Stock Trading Act. This bill would require every member of Congress to place investments into qualified blind trusts and ban them from buying or selling individual stocks while in office — ensuring members of Congress are serving the people, not their own stock portfolios. 

If this is too much of a hassle for lawmakers, then I’d say they can find another job. Banning congressional stock trading is supported by an overwhelming majority of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents. And I’m working to get it done.

Original source can be found here.