Senate Democrats Introduce Bill to Ban Presidential Social Media Trading

Senate Democrats introduced the Stop Corrupt Trading Act (S. 5221) on August 4, 2026, seeking to prohibit presidents and vice presidents from profiting through the sale of advance access to their social media statements. The legislation specifically targets Truth API, a service launched on August 1 by Trump Media & Technology Group that provides algorithmic and high-frequency trading firms with real-time feeds of high-ranking Truth Social accounts.

Under the proposed law, any individual or company in which a president or vice president holds at least a 5% ownership stake would be barred from selling such nonpublic information. Violators could face significant fines and up to five years in prison. Senator Alex Padilla and other Democratic lawmakers introduced the measure to close a gap in federal conflict-of-interest laws that currently exclude the president.

The bill was placed directly on the Senate calendar under Rule XIV. While a companion bill is being carried in the House by Representative Andrea Salinas, the measure faces significant hurdles for passage in a Republican-controlled Senate.