Peter Schweizer, president of the Government Accountability Institute (GAI), described the Department of Justice’s indictment of Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) for insider trading as a “very positive development’ during a Wednesday interview with Breitbart News Senior Editors-at-Large Rebecca Mansour and Joel Pollak on SiriusXM’s Breitbart News Tonight.
The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York said Collins was arrested and indicted earlier on Wednesday for securities fraud via insider trading. He allegedly tipped his son to the failure of a drug being testing by Australian biotechnology firm Innate Immunotherapeutics. The company’s stock price fell 92 percent following public disclosure of the drug’s failure in testing.
Collins also said Wednesday that he would continue his bid for reelection, telling reporters, “As I fight to clear my name, rest assured I will continue to work hard for the people and constituents of the 27th congressional district of New York, and I will remain on the ballot running for reelection this November.”
Schweizer framed the allegations against Collins as illustrative of “classic insider trading.”
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Schweizer noted that Collins had been previously investigated and charged by the House Ethics Committee on matters related to his nondisclosure of certain securities investments on his financial disclosure forms.
Schweizer said, “There’s corruption in Washington, DC, all the time. We actually ought to be — this may sound very bizarre — encouraged that this legal action is being taken, because it seems like it’s a pretty strong case, and the fact that somebody politically powerful like Congressman Collins is actually being held to account is a very positive development.”
Schweizer added, “I think in a country where people have been very frustrated that there is a different set of rules for the political class than there is for the rest of us, this is a great example of this Justice Department saying, ‘You know what? We are going to apply the rules, even to somebody who, in a way, is a political ally to this administration.’”
Schweizer concluded, “Charges are still being brought ought, and I think that’s got to be a very encouraging development for a lot people when there’s been so much of this lacking in the past with the previous administration or other individuals.”
Schweizer further praised Breitbart News as a news media outlet applying consistent standards to “both sides” of America’s left-right political divide.
“I signed on with Andrew to work with him on Breitbart,” said Schweizer. “What is remarkable about Breitbart is that it is one of the few outlets out there that will hit both sides, and it will try to hold a consistent standard to both sides when it comes to follow-the-money corruption, and that’s pretty rare.”
Schweizer added, “The left wants to call out conservatives and Republicans and attack them, but they protect their side of it, and I think what makes Breitbart unique is we recognize the corrupting power of big government — the reason that we like limited government — the reason we are concerned about the encroaching power of government is we see that it has a corrupting effect on the human soul, and that was always Andrew’s position. I think we’re very proudly continuing in that tradition.”
Breitbart News Tonight broadcasts live on SiriusXM Patriot 125 weekdays from 9:00 p.m. to midnight Eastern (6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Pacific).
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