Lawmakers demand probe into Trump tariff pause over insider trading

The suggestion emerged just hours before Trump’s announcement on Wednesday of a 90-day suspension of tariff increases for countries facing rates above 10%, excluding China. The move sparked positive sentiment across US stock markets.

Posting on Truth Social, Trump wrote: "BE COOL! Everything is going to work out well. The USA will be bigger and better than ever before!" and "THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!! DJT."

The Dow Jones index closed on an upward trajectory at 2,962.86 on Thursday, marking its highest level in five years. The S&P 500 reached its highest point since the 2008 subprime crisis, while the Nasdaq Composite surged by 12.16%.

According to ABC News, Democratic Senators Adam Schiff and Ruben Gallego sent a letter to Trump’s Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles, and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, requesting an investigation into potential conflicts of interest related to the president’s actions.

“This sequence of events raises grave legal and ethics concerns. The President, his family, and his advisors are uniquely positioned to be privy to and take advantage of non-public information to inform their investment decisions,” the senators said in their letter.

The senators requested that the Office of Government Ethics investigate whether any White House or executive branch officials — including special government employees — were informed of the announcement in advance, and what financial transactions, if any, were carried out by individuals with access to non-public information.

They also sought clarification on several aspects of Wednesday’s developments, including whether any members of Trump’s family were made aware of the deliberations prior to his Truth Social post announcing the tariff changes, and whether there are records of communications involving executive branch officials, family members, or special government employees.

Earlier, Nevada Representative Steven Horsford sharply criticised Greer during a congressional hearing regarding the sudden 90-day pause on tariffs, according to CBS News. 

Horsford accused the administration of lacking a coherent strategy, suggesting that even Greer had not been informed of the decision prior to the session. He questioned whether the move constituted market manipulation, highlighting the potential for financial gain by individuals with prior knowledge.

"If you came here knowing that you were going to be turned off, that these tariffs were going to be turned off, why didn't you include that in your opening statement? Why didn't you reference that as part of your testimony?" Horsford told Greer.

Greer defended the President’s authority over trade policy and maintained that the decision formed part of broader negotiations aimed at resetting the global trade system.

However, Horsford argued that the policy had caused significant harm to American businesses and the wider economy.

"Tariffs are a tool. It can be used in the appropriate way to protect US jobs and small businesses, but that's not what this does, so if it's not market manipulation, what is it? Who's benefitting? What billionaire just got richer?" he said.