Capitol Hill lawmakers have reportedly outperformed the S&P 500 for three consecutive years, potentially making up to $1 billion in stock trades in 2023
Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers have seen significant gains, particularly in technology stocks like Nvidia.
Nancy Pelosi's husband made nearly $2 million from Nvidia call options, raising concerns about potential conflicts of interest
Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Josh Hawley have proposed the "Ban Stock Trading for Government Officials Act" to address these conflicts
The proposed bill would ban individual stock trading for government officials and impose penalties for violations
Public support for banning lawmakers from trading individual stocks is high, with 86% in favor according to a survey
Despite potential legislative changes, investors can still achieve wealth through index funds like Vanguard S&P 500 ETF and SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust
These index funds historically provide consistent returns, with all 105 rolling 20-year periods yielding positive total returns
The average annualized total return for these index funds is close to 10%, doubling investors' money every seven years
Long-term investors can benefit from the stability and growth potential offered by index funds, even in the absence of individual stock trading