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Senators Launch New Effort to Ban Federal Elected Officials Profiting from Prediction Markets
(www.merkley.senate.gov)
this post was submitted on 08 Mar 2026
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Why make it so specific? Can’t we make it illegal to benefit from material, non-public information?
This is still insider trading, which ought to be illegal, but it appears to be generally accepted.
Sadly I believe this is because a blanket insider trading ban for Congress would be a non starter. Most of them are there for that exact reason imo, the corpo pac bribes are just a bonus that is helpful in guiding policy when they have to do actual “work”
Until I saw your comment, my (flippant) response to the person you replied was going to be “Because Congress hasn’t figured out how to use Polymarket.”
Which is a far less eloquent corollary to your comment.
Wondering if it's because the law is taken so literally in the US, instead of being in the "spirit" of the law. So if it's too broad or vague, someone will use a loophole.
I’m not sure we have laws. It depends heavily on who you are whether or not they are enforced. They are more notional generalisms of what we think the law ought to be rather than what it actually is.
They will have their spouse who just casually gambles place the bet. The Ol' Pelosi as I like to call it.
Debating letter vs spirit of law is a symptom of a shittily written law.