Top Dem wants feds to probe GOP ‘stock trading scandal’

The top Democrat on the House Rules Committee is calling for multiple federal investigations into a report from 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 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. 

{mosads}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. 

“The public needs to be able to trust we are working on their behalf and are not out to enrich ourselves.”

Collins already is facing a congressional ethics investigation over allegations of insider trading related to comments he made in the Capitol that he had made many “millionaires” in Buffalo, N.Y.   

Slaughter’s news release said The Hill story “bolsters allegations of insider trading by [Collins] and a growing number of Republican colleagues and confirms that Collins used taxpayer-funded government resources for personal gain — a clear violation of House rules.”

Both Slaughter and Collins represent neighboring congressional districts in western New York.

The top Democrat on the powerful Rules Committee, Slaughter has been a crusader against insider trading for more than a decade. In 2006, she authored the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act to bar insider trading by members of Congress and other federal officials.

Congress passed the STOCK Act in 2012, and former President Barack Obama signed it into law. Slaughter now is pushing to amend the insider-trading law to close a loophole that allows federal officials to participate in initial public offerings (IPOs) and exclusive, discounted stock deals outside of the U.S.

She says Collins bought $2.2 million of Innate stock in a 2013 IPO on the Australian market but never reported it as an IPO purchase to the House Ethics Committee. Last summer, Collins purchased 4 million more shares of Innate at a discounted price.

According to Slaughter, at least eight current and former House Republicans, as well as family members and congressional aides, have invested in Innate. 

“Upholding the public trust is the most sacred responsibility we have as members of Congress,” she said.