A federal judge ordered that former Rep. Chris Collins’ (R-NY) prison surrender date be delayed by two months, after defense attorneys said Collins has a high risk of contracting the deadly coronavirus, CNBC reports.
GOP Lawmaker Had No Donors In First Quarter
“Not a single human being donated to Rep. Chris Collins’ (R-NY) reelection campaign in the first three months of 2019,” the Daily Beast reports.
“The funds Collins received came from two political action committees representing moderate, business-friendly Republicans—the Tuesday Group PAC and the Republican Main Street Partnership (RMSP)—and from the campaign committee of a former colleague, Dan Donovan, a Staten Island Republican who lost his House reelection bid last year.”
Collins Will Remain on November Ballot
Indicted Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) will stay on the ballot in his New York congressional district this fall, the Buffalo News reports.
Roll Call: “Local GOP leaders had for several weeks been looking for a way to replace Collins with another Republican candidate on the ballot. The news Monday signals that they were not able to find a viable path to replace Collins.”
Collins Talks About FBI Visit to His Home
Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) opened up to WSYR-TV about how FBI agents made an early morning visit to his home earlier this year.
Said Collins: “That was the shock of all shocks, to have two agents at your door at 6 a.m. saying they just want to talk.”
For more than an hour, Collins said he “shared everything from A to Z” and then the agents hit him with a bombshell: “At the end of it all, they said, ‘Oh, by the way, we have a subpoena for you.'”
Collins Turned Down Plea Deal on Insider Trading Charges
“Federal prosecutors offered Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) a plea deal before indicting him on felony insider trading charges earlier this month, but the Republican from Clarence rejected it,” the Buffalo News reports.
“Criminal lawyers who are not involved in the case said, though, that they were not surprised that prosecutors sought to get Collins to settle the charges against him. They said they wouldn’t be surprised, either, if Collins and the other defendants in the case eventually plead guilty before the case goes to trial.”
Court Battle Likely In Bid to Replace Collins on Ballot
“The fight to replace the indicted Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) on the election ballot is likely to end up in court,” the Buffalo News reports.
“While Republicans have not yet settled on a way to remove Collins from the ballot in New York’s 27th Congressional District, Erie County Democratic Chairman Jeremy Zellner signaled that his party would challenge any effort if Collins moves to another state or if he opts to run for another elected office.”
“Republicans across the district indicated that it would be most likely that they would push for Collins to run for another, minor office, clearing the way for another congressional candidate.”
Ethics Investigators Say Collins Engaged In Insider Trading
Congressional ethics investigators have concluded there is “substantial reason to believe” Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) “engaged in insider trading and either took or requested official actions” to benefit a company in which he’s the largest shareholder, USA Today reports.
“Those may violations of House rules, standards of conduct and federal law.”
“Collins — who was the first member of Congress to endorse Donald Trump’s presidential campaign — is a board member of an Australian biotechnology company called Innate Immunotherapeutics.”
Ethics Panel Reviewing Charges Against Collins
The House Ethics Committee is reviewing allegations that Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) “engaged in misconduct, four months after his personal investment practices came under scrutiny in the media,” the Washington Post reports.
“The New York Republican, who has denied wrongdoing, received a barrage of negative headlines in April and May after the Daily Beast reported that he wrote legislation that would benefit a pharmaceutical company in which he held a substantial interest.”
Centrist Group ‘Will Never’ Meet with Freedom Caucus
Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) told The Hill that the centrist Tuesday Group affirmed at a meeting that they will not meet with the conservative Freedom Caucus to negotiate changes to an Obamacare replacement bill.
Said Collins: “I am not speaking for the White House, I’m not speaking for the Speaker, but I will speak for the Tuesday Group. We have never negotiated with the Freedom Caucus, there was never a meeting scheduled with the Freedom Caucus, we will never meet with the Freedom Caucus, because it’s not appropriate for a group of ad hoc members.”
Price Admits to Trading on Inside Information
Rep. Tom Price (R-GA), President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Health and Human Services, admitted that he decided to buy stock in an Australian biotech firm after receiving information from Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY), a board member of that company, the Huffington Post reports.
“Ethics experts stated that Price could be in violation of the STOCK Act, a bipartisan 2012 law that bans insider trading by members of Congress.”
GOP Lawmaker Slams Romney
Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) slammed Mitt Romney as an “ego-maniac,” Politico reports.
Said Collins: “Well, I mean, what do I know about Mitt Romney? I know that he is a self-serving, ego-maniac who puts himself first, who has a chip on his shoulder, that thinks he should be president of the United States.”
He added: “I mean, there’s no love lost between me and Mitt Romney. I’ve called him a loser for the last six months, even though I supported him.”
Quote of the Day
“Well, I can tell you this, the pressure that has got to be on President-elect Trump is immense. The enormity of the job ahead of him, and so I would have to say if this is his way of relaxing, God bless him.”
— Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY), quoted by The Week, saying that Donald Trump uses Twitter to relax.
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