US senator wants Trump probed for market manipulation

Adam Schiff has called for an investigation into who profited from the president’s tariff pause

US Democratic Senator Adam Schiff has called on Congress to investigate President Donald Trump for possible insider trading and market manipulation following his abrupt trade policy U-turn. Global stocks soared after the president paused the imposition of tariffs on a multitude of countries this week.

On Wednesday, Trump announced a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs against US trade partners, lowering duties to a flat 10% rate. The only exception was China, which he hit with an increase to 125% following Beijing’s tariff hike on US goods to 84%. Immediately after the announcement, US stock markets posted near-record gains after a week-long slump.

Mere hours before the announcement, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform: “BE COOL! Everything is going to work out well,” followed by, “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!! DJT,” referencing his media company’s stock ticker. The timing of his posts, the pause and the resulting market rally sparked speculation about market manipulation online, which became even more heated after White House aide Margo Martin posted a video of Trump praising financier Charles Schwab for making billions during the rally.

Pretty despicable to talk about how much money his friends made because he tanked the market for them. No shame.

— Tom Stone (@Tommystone88) April 9, 2025

“Trump removed many of the tariffs he had imposed in this on-again, off-again… kind of policy. This has just wreaked havoc on the markets,” Schiff said in his video address posted on X. “But there is another profound danger as well, and that is insider trading within the White House.”

“The question is, who knew what the president was going to do? And did people around the president trade stock knowing the incredible gyration the market was about to go through?” he added. Schiff went on to accuse Trump of corruption, citing his family’s crypto trading and the “conflicted self-dealing” of ally, billionaire Elon Musk.

Is Donald Trump's inner circle illegally profiting off of these huge swings in the stock market by insider trading?

Congress must find out. pic.twitter.com/ZZGX99PtFE

— Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) April 9, 2025

“We in Congress need to do more than demand answers. We need to do the oversight necessary to get those answers… We’re going to get to the bottom of this,” he pledged.

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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt earlier claimed that the tariff reversal was part of Trump’s broader negotiation strategy, calling it his “art of the deal.” The White House has so far made no comment on Schiff’s call for a congressional probe.

Other Democrats also voiced concerns. “The President of the United States is literally engaging in the world’s biggest market manipulation scheme,” the House Democratic Financial Services Committee wrote on X, in response to Trump’s “Time to buy” post.

Rep. Steven Horsford of Nevada openly questioned whether the pause amounted to market manipulation during a House hearing with Trump’s trade representative, Jamieson Greer on Wednesday.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called for all lawmakers to disclose recent stock purchases.

“I’ve been hearing some interesting chatter on the floor,” she wrote on X. “Disclosure deadline is May 15th. We’re about to learn a few things. It’s time to ban insider trading in Congress.”