How do you think the US gov't should deal with potential financial conflicts of interest among its employees?

"Gov't officials that affect policy should not be allowed to trade, period. Making laws on what their families can do is trickier but I think it should be scrutinized and subject to penalty if obvious ties are found. Banning and or minimizing lobbying $$ in politics will also go a long way. I'm not holding my breath for any of it to change."

• "Simply put…not allow it at all. You can trade only in non conflict of interests stocks. That is what is required of me at my employment."

"They should be prosecuted the way any other American would be. It is disgraceful that they give themselves a little slap on the wrist and then it gets swept under the rug."

• "Limit employees and all federal elected officials to only invest in etfs, mutual funds, or fixed income for the duration of their term."

"Blackout trading periods around announcements or news of impacted companies and void/unravel of trades if found to be in violation."

• "I believe that government employees should not be able to buy and sell stocks that they have firsthand knowledge of either rising or tanking. They should be at the markets mercy like the rest of America. If they do violate insider trading, they should be removed from office and punished like any ordinary citizen. Government employees should not get a pass. If the DOJ held government employees accountable, like everyday citizens are held accountable, the majority of these problems would stop happening. No one is above the law."

"Plain and simple: if your salary is funded by tax-payers, then you can not profit from public policies your position influences or has information on for future laws, contracts, and/or policies."

• "They should be excused from their office. Any employee would be dealt with in the same manner."

"I think it should be punished similar to insider trading. If the government really has that many hands in the stock market, it would take quite a bit of the free market away, which is the base principle our economy runs on. It also gives those officials an incentive other than the best interest of the American people to make their decisions on."

• "Gov't should require all transactions to be deisclosed at the time they are made. There could be an amount limit set, like private employees must report certain gratuities from vendors. No gov't employee should be making transactions when a new law or policy is being implemented."

"They shouldn’t benefit from favors they are getting bc they’ve given the company favorable conditions. Also insider info is illegal for non govt investors so it should be illegal for govt too."

• "They should NOT be able to trade stocks. Public service should mean something other than fattening their own pockets. If they want to trade on Wall St, they should be pursuing careers as traders instead."

"Gov’t employees and their families should only be allowed to hold funds not individual stocks. If they have individual stocks they have to be in a separately-manged account and can't be influenced."