Insider Trading by top DeLay Staffer?

[BR_Parkway]

by Rep Louise Slaughter
Tue Mar 28, 2006 at 09:19:12 AM PDT

Hi folks. I wanted to come here and follow-up on the story of possible insider-trading in Congress. Remember a few weeks ago I mentioned that I was hearing stories about possible insider trading by Tom DeLay's top leadership aide in Congress? Well today I am going to introduce legislation with my colleague Rep. Brian Baird of Washington that will block Members of Congress and their aides from engaging in insider trading. We can't let Members and their staffers making profits through day-trading using non public, sensitive information they become privy to because of their special access.

Read her diary...

The two Democrats who wrote the bill say they were motivated by the trading activity of a former top aide to Rep. Tom DeLay, the onetime Republican majority leader in the House. The aide, Tony Rudy, bought and sold hundreds of stocks from his computer in the U.S. Capitol in 1999 and 2000, according to financial-disclosure forms and other DeLay aides.

<...>

It is difficult to tell how much Mr. Rudy profited on particular trades. House financial statements require disclosure of stock trades only in broad ranges. Mr. Rudy bought each of his stocks for between $1,001 and $15,000 and sold them in the same ranges.

But Mr. Rudy's net worth grew from 1999 to 2000. Mr. Rudy and his wife were at least $49,000 in debt at the end of 1999, according to his disclosure form. They owned no more than $1,000 in stock and reported a student-loan debt between $50,001 and $100,000.

At the end of 2000, Mr. Rudy and his wife reported assets between $6,007 and $91,000. Their student-loan debt was between $30,002 and $100,000.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB114351554851509761.html?mod=hpp_us_pageone