Senate Democrats Block Trading Bill

Senate Democrats blocked a House-passed Republican bill, the Stop Insider Trading Act, from advancing toward a final vote on congressional stock trading. The vote was 53-47, short of the 60 needed to overcome a filibuster, a Senate rule that lets opponents stall legislation. Democrats said the measure did not go far enough because it barred new stock purchases by lawmakers, spouses and dependent children, but let them keep existing stocks. They also objected to voter ID language, calling it a Republican poison pill. Republicans said the bill paired two popular ideas: trading limits and photo ID to vote. The result killed the bill before the midterm break.