Seeking to break a deadlock on a high-profile reform bill, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has moved to force a Senate vote on legislation to bar insider trading by lawmakers and staff.
Reid and McConnell want to move forward on the House version of the legislation. Two significant provisions were dropped by the lower chamber, angering some Democratic and Republican lawmakers in both chambers. The House also expanded the bill to cover executive branch agencies.
One deleted provision would require “political intelligence consultants” firms to register, bringing new transparency to a shadowy yet booming sector of the Washington influence industry. This provision was sponsored by Sen. Chuck Grassley, and the Iowa Republican, along with Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), are fighting to restore it.
The House also scrapped Senate-passed language to expand federal prohibitions against bribery, theft of public money and other public corruption offenses. That provision was authored by Leahy (D-Vt.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas).
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