DeSantis Asks How Congress Members With 'No Investment Acumen' Outperform Warren Buffett — 'Oh You Just Happened to Buy Something…Then It Goes Up 150%'

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis questioned how some members of Congress, with no investment experience, can outperform Warren Buffett in the stock market. Speaking at a press conference on November 4, just after the midterm elections, DeSantis expressed skepticism about the notion of "beginner's luck." He provided an example, claiming that lawmakers often purchase stocks related to industries they are involved with on committees and see their investments surge by 150%.

DeSantis, who has never traded stocks since his election to the U.S. House in 2012, maintains a strict no-trading policy for himself. He has been advocating for such a ban on congressional stock trading for over a year. He proposed a bill to make Florida's federal candidates disclose any plans to trade individual stocks if elected, and he backed Rep. Anna Paulina Luna's efforts to push for this ban.

The House passed the Stop Insider Trading Act in July, but it stalled in the Senate after Republicans attached a voter identification requirement that Democrats opposed. DeSantis believes not enforcing the ban has hurt his party's electoral performance. Comparing the performance of average Republican and Democrat traders in Congress to the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE: SPY), which gained 16.6% in 2025, reveals a significant disparity.

The top 10 performers outperformed the index by more than doubling it, sparking public interest in tracking lawmakers' disclosures, akin to stock tips. House Democrats, who will take control of the chamber in January, have vowed to pass their own ban on congressional stock trading. DeSantis's question, "How does someone with no investment acumen keep beating Buffett?", highlights the discrepancy between the trading success of politicians and seasoned investors like Buffett.