Top Dem wants feds to probe GOP 'stock trading scandal'

Top Dem wants feds to probe GOP 'stock trading scandal'
By Scott Wong - 06/08/17 08:11 PM EDT


The top Democrat on the House Rules Committee is calling for multiple federal investigations into a report in The Hill that Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.) told GOP lawmakers they could make lots of money by investing early in his Australian biotech company.

In separate letters sent Thursday, Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.) urged the Securities and Exchange Commission, Justice Department, House Ethics Committee and the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) to launch investigations into what she described as a “major stock trading scandal among House Republicans.”

The Hill reported Thursday morning that Collins — the largest shareholder and a board member of Innate Immunotherapeutics — had told some fellow GOP colleagues on Capitol Hill that if they “get in early” they can make a “big profit,” according to one lawmaker. He also bragged to another group that he had made money for some of his fellow lawmakers after tipping them off to the Innate stock.

Collins, one of President Trump’s top allies on Capitol Hill, has denied any wrongdoing. He said he never encouraged anyone to buy Innate stock, and he denied bragging about making money for lawmakers.

“The story today is truly shocking and makes it clear that some members of Congress are embroiled in a major stock trading scandal that violates the public trust and likely the law,” Slaughter wrote in a statement.

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http://thehill.com/homenews/house/337070-top-dem-wants-feds-to-probe-gop-stock-trading-scandal