Fetterman Didn't Disclose Kids' Stock Investments While Pushing Stock Ban

Senator John Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat, is under scrutiny for failing to disclose his children's substantial stock portfolios, which he has now reported in a recent financial disclosure. The portfolios, valued between $45,000 and $675,000 in stocks and $53,000 to $445,000 in corporate bonds, include investments in major banks such as Citigroup and J.P. Morgan, institutions that Fetterman oversees as a member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. Fetterman’s disclosures have raised questions about his commitment to ethics, particularly as he has campaigned on the promise to hold lawmakers accountable and ban stock ownership among Congress members and their families. Despite his advocacy, he did not include his children's investments in previous disclosures during his Senate candidacy in 2021 and 2022, nor in his first filing as an elected official in May 2023. This oversight could undermine his image as a champion of ethical governance. In 2022, Fetterman co-sponsored the ETHICS Act, which aims to prohibit lawmakers and their families from trading corporate securities, allowing only a modest $10,000 in securities for lawmakers' children. A spokesperson for Fetterman attributed the late disclosures to investments made by the children's grandparents, who were reportedly unaware of the reporting requirements. The situation highlights a potential conflict between Fetterman's public stance on ethics and the financial activities of his family, as brokers executed 31 trades last year in various corporate stocks and bonds, raising further concerns about transparency and accountability in his office.