AOC Calls Out Colleagues Over Suspicious Stock Market Activity Minutes Before Trump's Tariffs Pause

New York Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called out her own Congressional colleagues who might have participated in insider trading after it was reported that NASDAQ call volume spiked just minutes before President Donald Trump announced he'd pause his retaliatory tariffs.

Trump declared a full 90-day suspension of all the “reciprocal” tariffs that took effect at midnight—except for those on China—in a dramatic about-face from a president who had long championed his historically high tariff rates as permanent.

Tariffs on China, however, are not only staying in place—they’re going up. Trump announced they’ll rise to 125% from 104%, following Beijing’s announcement of new retaliatory tariffs earlier that day. Meanwhile, all other countries hit with reciprocal tariff hikes will see their rates rolled back to the standard 10%, he said.

At exactly 9:37 a.m. on April 9, President Donald Trump posted on social media, urging his followers to “buy stocks.” The message came just hours after his administration had doubled down on sweeping tariffs, a move that had unsettled global markets.

Meanwhile, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was preparing to testify before the House Ways and Means Committee, ready to defend the administration’s hardline trade stance. But just minutes before he was set to speak, a senior staffer rushed in with unexpected news: Trump had abruptly changed course.

The market wasted no time. Stocks surged across the board. What had begun as a turbulent day for investors quickly turned into a windfall—especially for anyone who got a heads-up before the tweet hit the timeline.

With this in mind, Ocasio-Cortez took to X and wrote:

"Any member of Congress who purchased stocks in the last 48 hours should probably disclose that now. I’ve been hearing some interesting chatter on the floor. Disclosure deadline is May 15th. We’re about to learn a few things. It’s time to ban insider trading in Congress."

You can see her post below.

Many concurred.

Shortly after the announcement, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent claimed the tariff pause had been “his strategy all along.” He also praised Trump for having the “great courage to stay the course until this moment.”

CNN had previously reported that Bessent flew to Mar-a-Lago on Sunday to talk tariffs with Trump, urging him to pivot toward sealing new trade deals with multiple countries.

Meanwhile, Greer told lawmakers on Wednesday that he hadn’t known about the pause until it was publicly announced. He acknowledged the change had been floated as a possibility earlier that morning, but when pressed on whether he knew it was going into effect, Greer said only that the administration regularly discusses “all kinds of policies.”