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Defending lawmakers' right to invest in private companies like SpaceX

Published July 28, 2026 at 12:03 PM UTC

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Supporters of congressional stock ownership in SpaceX argue that the purchases are fully legal under current ethics rules and reflect a vote of confidence in American innovation. Members of Congress, like all citizens, have the right to invest their personal savings in the stock market. SpaceX is a private company that has proven its value to the government through competitive contracts. The STOCK Act ensures transparency by requiring lawmakers to disclose their trades, and there is no evidence that any member has used confidential information to time their purchases. Rather than posing a conflict, these investments align lawmakers' interests with the success of a national champion in space technology. Many of the same members also support robust funding for NASA and the military, which is part of their job. The public can review these holdings online. Banning such investments would discourage talented people from serving in Congress, as they would have to forgo normal financial planning. The current system, with full disclosure, strikes a reasonable balance between ethical concerns and the reality that elected officials live in the same economy as their constituents.