Mises Wire

The Next Martha Stewart...Not!!

The Next Martha Stewart...Not!!

Interesting report on Bill Frist's sale of HCA shares.

Insider knowledge? For years, Frist was criticized for holding HCA stock while directing legislation on Medicare reform and patient issues. His office has consistently deflected criticism by noting that his assets were in a blind trust and not under his active control.

However... Frist traded using only public information, and only to eliminate the appearance of a conflict of interest, Stevenson said. Interesting how the desire to eliminate appearance of conflict of interest just suddenly arose so close to a one-year high in share price. We just know he'll realistically end up in prison, then maybe confined to his home with an ankle bracelet on. We can certainly bet on that for a powerful Republican, right? (BTW, my point is about disparity in enforcement, NOT that Frist or inside traders should be punished.)

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