A Democratic congresswoman sold dozens of individual stock holdings in the hours before President Donald Trump’s April 2 “Liberation Day” tariff declaration, according to a NOTUS review of new congressional records.
Freshman Rep. Julie Johnson of Texas made 77 separate stock sales on April 1, the records indicate. She then made another 55 stock sale transactions on April 7.
In all, Johnson sold between $218,000 and $2.22 million worth of personal stock during the first week of April as the market crashed in response to Trump’s tariff announcement — including shares in several companies that the U.S. House committees of which she’s a member have jurisdiction, according to a NOTUS analysis of congressional records. (Federal law only requires members of Congress to disclose trade values in broad ranges.)
Johnson joins several other wealthy lawmakers, including Republican Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Jefferson Shreve of Indiana as well as fellow Democrat Jared Moskowitz of Florida, who made a flurry of stock trades immediately before or after Trump’s tariff binge. They’ve faced bipartisan criticism over whether they were attempting to cash in on government decisions.
And Johnson made her trades in the midst of a roiling debate on Capitol Hill over whether federal lawmakers and their immediate family members should be banned from buying and selling individual equities and even cryptocurrencies.
Republicans and Democrats alike have increasingly expressed support in principle for one or more active bills that would restrict congressional stock-trading practices, including the bipartisan TRUST in Congress Act, which attracted seven new co-sponsors this month — five Democrats and two Republicans.
Johnson’s congressional office did not respond Friday to inquiries by phone and email.
But Johnson, who is one of Congress’ most active stock traders having made hundreds of transactions this decade, told Business Insider earlier this year: “In my personal situation, I have money managers that take care of all of it, and I don’t have anything to do with what we buy and sell.”
One government reform advocate isn’t buying that explanation.
“Members of Congress are responsible for what decisions are made by their stock brokers,” said Aaron Scherb, senior director of legislative affairs for Common Cause. “It looks bad and smells bad, as well.”
Scherb said the easiest way to ensure there are “no real or perceived conflicts of interest” among members of Congress is for lawmakers to place their assets in what’s known as a “qualified blind trust” — a blind trust managed by a trustee and certified by Congress to ensure elected officials have no involvement in their own personal finances.
Johnson must sign and certify periodic stock trade disclosure documents lawmakers must make to comply with the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012, created to curb insider trading, defend against financial conflicts and enhance transparency.
Johnson sits on the House Committee on Homeland Security, which has jurisdiction over homeland security matters. Her trades on April 1 include the sale of up to $15,000 worth of shares in Lockheed Martin, a major defense contractor that made tens of millions of dollars from contracts with the Department of Homeland Security over the years. Lockheed Martin’s stock price closed around $449 per share on April 1, then dropped below $431 on April 7 before rebounding.
Johnson also sold up to $30,000 worth of shares each in Honeywell and L3Harris Technologies, which have also won Department of Homeland Security contracts, federal records show.
On April 7, the congresswoman also sold up to $15,000 worth of shares in defense contractor RTX, which last year paid a $200 million civil penalty to the U.S. State Department to settle 750 violations of the Arms Export Control Act.
The House Committee on Foreign Affairs, where Johnson also sits, has jurisdiction over “activities and policies of the State, Commerce and Defense departments and other agencies related to the Arms Export Control Act.”
Other stock sales Johnson made during the first week of office include shares of companies that rank among the most powerful government lobbying forces in Washington.
Among them: Amazon, Apple, aircraft manufacturer Boeing, Comcast, pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson, Facebook parent company Meta, Ford Motor Co., Microsoft, PepsiCo, insurer UnitedHealth, package shipper UPS and oil companies Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil and Marathon Petroleum.
The only stocks Johnson bought during the first week of April were shares worth up to $15,000 each in 3M and Capital One Financial, per congressional disclosures.
It’s unclear whether Johnson’s numerous stock trades proved lucrative. By law, members of Congress have up to 45 days to disclose personal stock trades, meaning Johnson would have until late May or early June to disclose any other trades she made during mid- to late-April.
Johnson’s personal wealth ranges well into the millions of dollars and includes hundreds of stock holdings, various stock funds, a law practice and two rental beach houses in Florida together worth between $6 million and $30 million, according to a disclosure of her assets that she filed with Congress in mid-2024 during her congressional campaign.
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Dave Levinthal is a Washington, D.C.-based investigative journalist.