- Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia has accused the Walt Disney Co. of sexualizing children.
- Greene also owns up to $45,000 worth of Disney stock.
- Congress is actively debating whether to ban federal lawmakers from trading stock.
Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene this week accused Walt Disney Co. of sexualizing children after the entertainment giant criticized a Florida education law that critics have dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" bill — and vowed to fight against it.
"It's hard to believe that Disney, Walt Disney, the Walt Disney Co., would be the very place that this is happening," she said during an interview with Infowars broadcaster and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. "This is supposed to be the happiest place on Earth, a place where innocence is celebrated. But it seems to be the place where innocence is actually under attack."
Greene added: "Walt Disney — they need to pay a serious price for this."
What Greene didn't mention is that she is a Disney investor, according to personal financial disclosures filed with the Clerk of the House of Representatives.
Entering 2021, Greene owned between $1,001 and $15,000 in Walt Disney Co. stock, her most recent annual financial disclosure indicate.
Greene subsequently added Disney stock to her portfolio. She purchased shares valued at between $1,001 and $15,000 on August 31, 2021, and then more shares valued in the same range on November 15, 2021, congressional records show. By law, members of Congress are only required to disclose the value of their assets in broad ranges.
When asked by Insider about her Disney stock, Greene declined to address her ownership. The congresswoman said in an email Friday that "anyone who opposes anti-grooming laws like the one in Florida is pro-child predator. Stop sexualizing children."
In September, Greene told Insider: "I have an independent investment advisor that has full discretionary authority on my accounts. I do not direct any trades."
Greene, who regularly buys and sells individual corporate stocks, did not say whether she provided general guidance to her advisor, such as whether to avoid buying certain kinds of stocks.
She also did not address questions of whether members of Congress should be allowed to buy and sell individual stocks in the first place — an issue that the Committee on House Administration is scheduled to debate on April 7 at a public congressional hearing.
The issue of federal lawmakers and their stock trades has heated up following publication of Insider's "Conflicted Congress" project, which in December found that dozens of lawmakers, and at least 182 senior congressional staffers, had failed to comply with the financial reporting requirements of the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012.
"Conflicted Congress" also found numerous examples of conflicts of interest, including that four members of Congress or their spouses have either currently or recently invested money in Russian companies at a time when Russia has invaded Ukraine.
'Secretly profiting'
Jennifer Strahan, one of several candidates challenging Greene in Georgia's 14th District Republican primary, slammed Greene for her ownership of Disney stock.
"Rep. Greene's hypocrisy seems to know no bounds," Strahan told Insider. "This is just another in a long list of examples of her having a strong public opinion to garner attention, but secretly profiting off of the opposite."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on March 28 signed into law legislation officially known as the Parental Rights in Education bill. The law will limit teachers' instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity is now law in Florida. It's set to take effect on July 1.
While defenders say it will apply only to teachers of students in kindergarten through third grade, critics say the bill may extend further because it contains ambiguous language banning such instruction "in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate."
DeSantis signed the bill publicly during a ceremony and press conference at a charter school in Spring Hill, Florida, saying there had been "a nationwide trend to cut parents' out of their children's education."
"In Florida, we not only know that parents have a right to be involved, we insist that parents have a right to be involved," said DeSantis, who is up for reelection this year, as he stood behind a lectern that read "Protect Children, Support Parents."
Correspondent Kimberly Leonard contributed to this article.