Sen. Cory Booker says Congress should hold hearings on whether insider trading on Trump's tariffs occurred

Source: NBC News

April 13, 2025, 9:53 AM EDT / Updated April 13, 2025, 10:14 AM EDT


WASHINGTON — Sen. Cory Booker said Sunday that Congress should hold hearings and defended Democratic lawmakers’ calls for investigations into any possibility of insider trading after President Donald Trump encouraged people to buy stocks before reversing his tariff policy last week.

“There is enough of an offense here, there’s enough smoke here that should demand congressional hearings,” the New Jersey Democrat said on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.”

Democrats began questioning whether anyone traded improperly after Trump said on social media Wednesday morning that “this is a great time to buy” as stocks were slumping after the president’s tariff rollout and then, just hours later, announced that most of the steep tariffs would be temporarily reduced, sending the stock market shooting up.

When asked whether Democrats had any evidence of anyone profiting off of Trump’s announcement, Booker initially dodged the question and criticized the president’s administration, emphasizing that Congress is responsible for oversight.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/sen-cory-booker-says-congress-hold-hearings-whether-insider-trading-tr-rcna201032