Jake Tapper, one of CNN ‘s premiere anchors, pressed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday to respond to President Donald Trump ‘s menacing attack that she’s practiced illegal stock trading. ‘Why do you have to read that,’ Pelosi protested as Tapper zoned in on her. ‘We’re here to talk about the 60th anniversary of Medicaid. That’s what I agreed to come to talk about.’

Tapper pressed on leading Pelosi to tell Tapper Trump’s allegation was ‘ridiculous.’ ‘In fact, I very much support the [efforts to] stop the trading of members of Congress ,’ she continued. ‘Not that I think anybody is doing anything wrong. If they are, they are prosecuted, and they go to jail. But because of the confidence it instills in the American people, don’t worry about this,’ the former speaker continued.

At issue is new legislation teed up by Republican Senator Josh Hawley that would ban members of Congress as well as the president and vice president from trading individual stocks. The legislation cleared a key committee hurdle powered by Democrats’ support.

‘I wonder why [Josh] Hawley would pass a bill that Nancy Pelosi is in absolute love with — He is playing right into the dirty hands of the Democrats ,’ Trump ripped on Truth Social, referring to Missouri ‘s senior Republican senator. ‘It’s a great bill for her, and her ‘husband ‘but so bad for our country!’ That post amounted to a head-snapping U-turn from the president’s earlier tacit praise for the new version of Hawley’s bill that cleared a key Senate committee on Wednesday.

Trump had told a reporter earlier on Wednesday he supported the concept of the legislation, an early signal he was hesitant to fully publicly embrace it following a Punchbowl News report that the White House was lobbying intensely against passage because it could impact the finances of the executive. Pelosi said Trump’s attack on her signaled his own exposure on stock trading.

‘The president has his own exposure, so he’s always projecting,’ Pelosi went on. ‘Let’s not give him any more time on that please.’ Hawley’s Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments (PELOSI) Act – named after former Speaker Nancy Pelosi – would ban lawmakers from trading or holding stocks.

The timing of some of Pelosi’s stock trades have raised eyebrows over the years, including her husband’s sale of 30,000 Google shares in December 2022, one month before the company was sued for antitrust violations. Pelosi has never faced any charges for insider trading and her office has maintained that all stock market transactions are maintained by her husband, Paul.

As a part of a deal to gain Democratic support, Hawley agreed to change the measure’s name from the PELOSI Act to the HONEST Act. The measure, which passed out of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, now includes presidents and vice presidents from stock trading as well.