There are multiple reports claiming that U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made a $1 million investment in the electric vehicle company Tesla a day before President Joe Biden announced his decision to switch to an all-electric federal fleet.
Last week, news outlets including Business Insider, the San Francisco Chronicle, Refinery29 and Benzinga reported that Nancy Pelosi had bet big on Elon Musk-owned company with her million-dollar investment by purchasing 25 call options on the Tesla stock with a strike price of $500 and an expiration date of March 18, 2022. The reports also noted that Pelosi spent between $500,000 and $1,000,000 on the transaction and stood to benefit from Biden's new EV plan.
Social media users also started circulating an image claiming Pelosi had invested in Tesla just one day before Biden announced his intention to replace the U.S. government's fleet with electric vehicles on Jan. 25. – suggesting that she had advance knowledge of Biden's plan and purchased the Tesla stock to benefit from the president's decision.
The origins of the claim can be traced back to a Jan. 24 tweet posted by user Sawyer Meritt about a disclosure filing seemingly made by Pelosi. Public officials (including members of Congress) are required to submit the report every time they or their family members conduct any "purchase, sale, or exchange of stocks, bonds, commodity futures, and other forms of securities," of transaction amounts exceeding $1,000.
Fact-Check
According to fact-checking website Snopes, Pelosi did not personally invest in Tesla. However, her husband, Paul, did, so the above-mentioned claims are inaccurate in that regard. The website also pointed out that Pelosi family's investment in Tesla did not take place a day before Biden made his EV announcement and the transaction took place on Dec. 22, more than a month before Biden's announcement.
Pelosi's periodic transaction report confirms the date of purchase and the fact that the transaction was made by the House Speaker's husband. The "SP" under the "Owner" column clarifies that Paul was behind the trade and not the congresswoman.
That being said, even though the transactions were made by Pelosi's spouse or made a month it advance, it still raises concerns over a conflict of interest on Pelosi's part or whether she stood to gain from Biden's upcoming plans.
