To Rein in Big Tech, First Check Congress
It starts with restricting their personal trading in single name stocks.
It is easy to criticize the monopolistic power wielded by Big Tech and the social ills that it causes. What may not be as readily apparent, however, are the actual and perceived conflicts many Congressmen and their staffs have with the industry.
I could write at length about the power of special interest groups and the need for campaign finance reform, but this is an article, not a treatise. The first step to reining in the power of Big Tech is to check Congress. And it starts with something simple.
Trading in their personal brokerage accounts.
That’s right, Congressmen and their staffs — despite being privy to nonpublic information — are generally permitted to trade in the stocks of companies they directly oversee.
Although the STOCK Act restricts them from using “any nonpublic information derived from the individual’s position … or gained from performance of the individual’s duties, for personal benefit”, proving a violation is another story. Many Congressmen have failed to comply with the law, and have been permitted to act with impunity. They often successfully claim ignorance or clerical errors. Or my personal favorite: “it was my spouse’s or…
