President Donald Trump took direct aim at Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) on Wednesday, slamming the conservative lawmaker as a �second-tier senator� for sponsoring legislation to ban congressional stock trading�legislation Trump claims plays into Democratic hands.

�I wonder why Hawley would pass a Bill that Nancy Pelosi is in absolute love with,� Trump posted on Truth Social. �It�s a great Bill for her, and her �husband,� but so bad for our Country! … I don�t think real Republicans want to see their President, who has had unprecedented success, TARGETED, because of the �whims� of a second-tier Senator named Josh Hawley!�

That public rebuke came just hours after Hawley helped shepherd the bill through a Senate committee, a move aimed at curbing insider trading among lawmakers�something critics say has become rampant on both sides of the aisle.

Appearing Wednesday night on Jesse Watters Primetime, Hawley faced the insult head-on.

�Are you a second-tier senator?� Watters asked bluntly.

�Well, that�s not the worst thing that�s been said about me today,� Hawley responded coolly, before revealing he had spoken to Trump directly that evening. �He reiterated to me he wants to see a ban on stock trading by people like Nancy Pelosi and members of Congress.�

Hawley doubled down on the bill�s intent and targeted the former House Speaker directly: �Pelosi shouldn�t just be investigated�she should be prosecuted,� Hawley said. �You shouldn�t be able to go up to Congress and get rich by trading on information that only you have and not members of the public.�

When pressed further on Trump�s accusation, Hawley suggested the president may have been misled by critics of the bill who claimed it would require Trump to sell personal assets. �Not the case at all,� Hawley said. �The president and the vice president and all their assets are totally exempted.�

Hawley closed with a stark defense of the bill, named the PELOSI Act�an acronym for �Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments.� �It is named for her because she is the poster child for this kind of behavior,� he said. �It ought to be illegal and it ought to be prosecutable.�

�I�ve supported this for years,� he said. �It�s time Congress cleaned up its act.�

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)