By now, conservatives across the country are familiar with the double standards of the Left and the bias of the liberal media. But the case of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband and his illegal stock trades has elevated the undeniable hypocrisy of the Left to new heights.
Paul Pelosi has been accused of breaking the law by purchasing stock options for companies that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi may regulate. But instead of simply calling for an investigation to address concerns, and with an unquenchable thirst for bureaucracy, Democrats are pushing new legislation to ban members of Congress and their families from holding stocks.
Rather than demanding accountability and enforcing existing laws, their new legislation has the veneer of doing something but without the political risks. Insider trading is already a crime, and given the actions of the speaker’s husband, a full investigation would provide needed transparency to the people. Yet no members of Congress or the media have come forward to demand an inquiry into Paul Pelosi’s transactions or dealings.
When I was attacked with a stock trading conspiracy, I knew the best answer was transparency, and I welcomed it. Entering office, I expected to be attacked for working to achieve the American dream — and that I would have to defend it amid the anti-capitalist, anti-American rhetoric in Washington. Within weeks of being sworn into the Senate, a left-wing blog published a political attack written as if in coordination with Democratic operatives. It stated, falsely, that I traded stocks following a Senate briefing on an emerging virus that was being reported in the headlines.
I spent over 20 years in the highly regulated financial services industry and built a career on expertise, integrity, and regulatory compliance. Due to my and my husband’s roles, we did not have access to discretionary stock trading accounts and were contractually prevented from doing so. That’s why, when I entered the Senate, I already met a higher standard of compliance than other members thanks to a walled-off portfolio that far surpassed the requirements under the STOCK Act.
With nothing to hide, I immediately went on multiple national news programs and provided all the facts and documents on my campaign website and to regulators. But the liberal media refused to cover any exonerating facts, including contractual agreements that proved that I was not involved in trading decisions. These narrative-busting facts were never reported, nor was my eventual vindication.
Where are the same indignant outrage and the calls for investigation into Paul Pelosi? No one on the Left is interested in investigating the circumstances of his investments. Instead, by touting new legislation, the Left wants to distract from the whole mess and conflate it with the actual accountability of upholding existing laws. While the press doggedly pursue baseless allegations against conservatives to damage them, the same wrongdoing by Democrats is dismissed as “free markets.”
This hypocrisy is a growing part of our politics and media. In 2020, the Left and its allies ignored the hundreds of destructive “defund the police” protests and policies, even when they resulted in the killing of retired police captain David Dorn, record number of police killings at the hands of felons, and complete anarchy in progressive-run cities. They refused to investigate Hunter Biden’s many conflicts of interest, censoring true stories while relentlessly covering the false Russia narrative.
The legacy media and the Left won’t call out their own, and the case of the Pelosis’ stock transactions appears to be no different. If our laws are meant to be upheld, then they must apply to everyone regardless of their political affiliation or proximity to power. A divided America emerging from a pandemic, battling crime, open borders, and inflation, deserves better than a partisan double standard in applying our basic laws. This investigation would be an easy signal that we can start to regain our balance.
Kelly Loeffler is a former U.S. senator from Georgia.
