I get wanting to avoid conflicts of interest, that's fair. But banning lawmakers from buying any individual stock feels too broad to me, like it treats normal investing as automatically shady. Maybe clearer disclosure rules would make more sense, though I'm honestly not sure.

Imagine a lawmaker buying a few shares of a local grocery chain using only public news; that seems normal, not corrupt. My opponent makes a fair point about insider information, and I honestly don't know how to argue with that. Still, a total ban just feels too broad to me.

Take a mayor or state rep who buys a few shares of a local bank after reading public earnings news; that seems like ordinary investing, not corruption. The other side makes a fair point about self-dealing, and I’m not sure how to answer it. A blanket ban still feels like overkill to me.