North Carolina Representative Tim Moore is betting big on a stock market downturn, rekindling debate over whether lawmakers should face stricter limits on personal investments.
According to disclosures tracked by Quiver Quantitative, Moore purchased up to $150,000 worth of Direxion Daily Small Cap Bear 3X Shares (TZA), a leveraged exchange-traded fund that delivers three times the inverse daily performance of the Russell 2000 Index.
TZA is typically used by sophisticated traders to hedge or profit from short-term declines in small-cap stocks, making it a high-risk, high-reward vehicle.
Quiver’s data shows Moore made two purchases in late August. It’s not the first time he has bet against small-cap equities: earlier that month, he disclosed as much as $380,000 in similar bearish trades, also captured by Quiver.
“A sitting U.S. Congressman is betting against the U.S. economy,” investor and X user Gurgavin wrote. “If American small-cap stocks go down 1%, TZA goes up 3%.”
Accusations of insider trading swirl
Rep. Moore’s trading record, and the controversy surrounding it, pales in comparison to that of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has long faced accusations of benefiting from privileged information in the stock market.
The scrutiny has even inspired what traders call the “Nancy Pelosi Strategy,” in which investors mimic the moves of her household portfolio.
Pelosi’s office has repeatedly stressed that she personally does not own stocks, noting that the trades in question belong to her husband, Paul Pelosi.
Still, the perception of insider advantage has fueled bipartisan calls for reform.
Senators Josh Hawley, Bernie Sanders, and John Fetterman have all backed legislation requiring lawmakers to place their assets in a blind trust while in office. Hawley has gone further, reintroducing the so-called PELOSI Act, which would fine members of Congress and their spouses for trading individual stocks.
Trade war and a weakening economy add scrutiny
While Congressman Moore has not been accused of wrongdoing and allegations of insider trading involving Nancy Pelosi were never substantiated — the optics are troubling.
At a time when the U.S. government is waging trade wars and imposing policies that bring higher prices and slower job growth, disclosures of lawmakers betting on market downturns risk deepening public distrust.
President Donald Trump’s trade war was billed as a bid to rebuild U.S. manufacturing capacity. However, the strategy came with trade-offs: heightened uncertainty and short-term economic pain for American households.
Even absent proof of misconduct, legal scholars warn that lawmakers’ privileged access to information raises serious concerns.
“Congressional stock trading risks a conflict of interest in policymaking and insider trading,” Cornell Law School has noted. “If legislators are trading stocks, there is the risk that legislators will write laws and expend efforts to benefit their private stock holdings rather than the public’s interest.”
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