"Market manipulation": Democrats scrutinize Trump's posts before tariff retreat

• "BE COOL! Everything is going to work out well," Trump posted on Truth Social Wednesday morning.
• The minutes later he posted a separate message: "THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!!"
• Then, early Wednesday afternoon, Trump abruptly announced the decision to suspend all but 10% baseline tariffs while hiking China levies to 125%.

Driving the news: That timeline turned some Democratic heads.

• "These constant gyrations in policy provide dangerous opportunities for insider trading," Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) wrote on social media. On Thursday he shared a letter he co-authored with Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) to inquire who knew about the U-turn ahead of time.
• "An insider trading scandal is brewing," Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) chimed in. "Trump's 9:30am tweet makes it clear he was eager for his people to make money off the private info only he knew."
• Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.) questioned in a video, "How is this not market manipulation?"

What they're saying: "It is the responsibility of the President of the United States to reassure the markets and Americans about their economic security in the face of nonstop media fearmongering," White House spokesperson Kush Desai told Axios.

• "Democrats railed against China's cheating for decades, and now they're playing partisan games instead of celebrating President Trump's decisive action yesterday to finally corner China," the statement said.
• A Securities and Exchange Commission spokesperson declined to comment to Axios.

By the numbers: The Dow soared nearly 8% Wednesday, the S&P 500 index ballooned by more than 9% and Nasdaq closed up 12%, Axios' Nathan Bomey reported.

• In a since-scrutinized video of the president introducing Charles Schwab in the Oval Office Wednesday afternoon, Trump joked that Schwab, "made two-and-a-half billion today."

Zoom out: Some progressive Dems used the trade flip-flop as an opportunity to urge for a long-floated ban on members of Congress trading stock.

• "Members of Congress should never be allowed to trade stocks. Period," Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) wrote on Bluesky.
• Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) re-upped his call for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to bring legislation banning congressional stock trading to the floor, adding, "enough is enough!"
• Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) echoed that sentiment, writing, "Any member of Congress who purchased stocks in the last 48 hours should probably disclose that now."

• She added she'd been "hearing some interesting chatter on the floor" and predicted "we're about to learn a few things" with the financial disclosure deadline looming on May 15.

Context: The STOCK Act, passed in 2012, requires members of Congress to file financial disclosures of their stock trades within 30 days and established new penalties for insider trading, according to the Campaign Legal Center.

• But lawmakers are not banned from investing in companies, even ones that their work may intersect with.
• A 2022 New York Times analysis of members' transactions between 2019 and 2021 found that at least 97 lawmakers bought or sold stock, bonds or other assets related to their work or reported similar transactions by their spouse or child.

Yes, but: Trump's news came as a shock to many Republicans on the Hill, Axios' Andrew Solender reported.

• Mixed messaging from the White House — and a lack of advanced notice before Trump backed down — left GOP allies recovering from tariff whiplash alongside rest of the country and griping that loyalists were not looped in on the plans.

The other side: U.S. trade representative Jamieson Greer, who was testifying on Capitol Hill as Trump's announcement hit, said during questioning from Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.) that Trump's tariff pause isn't "market manipulation."

• Horsford replied, "Then what is it? Because it sure is not a strategy."
• Greer answered, "We're trying to reset the global trading system."

Go deeper: Inside the Oval: 3 reasons Trump buckled on tariffs