Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., said he was working with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., on new legislation because although she's "wrong a lot," she is "not corrupt."
His comments on Fox News arrive as the unlikely pair has teamed up to bar stock trading among members of Congress and their families alongside Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill.
"AOC is wrong a lot. She'd probably say the same thing about me," Gaetz explained. "But she's not corrupt. And I will work with anyone and everyone to ensure that Congress is not so compromised.
"We should disallow congressional stock trading for the same reason we don't allow the referee to bet on the game," he added.
The push to ban stock trading among members of Congress is motivated by several high-profile incidents over the past few years, including one that involved the husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
According to a New York Post report last year, Paul Pelosi had been exercising successful runs in the market for quite some time. For example, he initially invested in Nvidia before President Joe Biden approved the Chips and Science Act.
But Pelosi prematurely pulled out of the investment amid intense public scrutiny, losing over $340,000, Reuters reported.
Former Republican Sens. Richard Burr of North Carolina and Kelly Loeffler of Georgia were involved in a similar situation years earlier, ultimately leading to Burr's retirement.
"The ability to individually trade stock erodes the public's trust in government," Ocasio-Cortez stated. "When members have access to classified information, we should not be trading in the stock market on it. It's really that simple."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.