Former Rep. Chris Collins today changed his not guilty plea in his insider trading case, reversing months of claiming he was being hounded by “fake news” and that he would eventually be cleared.
Collins had resigned a day earlier in disgrace, not saying in the lead up to the bombshell filing he would change his plea about his plans for re-election, but hinting that it was a strong possibility he would seek another term.
After all, Collins had won re-election in a deep red part of Western New York where President Donald Trump had won easily in 2016. Collins was a vocal supporter of the president, having been the first member of Congress to endorse his presidential campaign that year.
The election victory over Nate McMurray, however, was narrow given he was under federal indictment. It was not a complex bribery or influence scheme, but a very simple-to-understand accusation: Dumping stock after learning the company’s fortunes were about to go south. He warned his son from the law of the White House to do the same.
“By virtue of his office, Christopher Collins helped write the laws of this country, but he acted as if the law did not apply to him,” said U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman. “Today, by pleading guilty, Collins acknowledged that while he was a member of Congress he committed insider trading and then lied to the FBI in an attempt to cover it up. Today’s plea is a reminder that all citizens stand equal before the law in our criminal justice system.”
The Collins case is not dissimilar from the case against ex-Rep. Michael Grimm, who faced tax evasion charges. He won re-election to his Republican-leaning Staten Island and Brooklyn House district despite being under indictment, only to enter into a plea agreement. His resignation took effect five days into his third term.
Grimm, like Collins, wanted voters to trust them that they had done nothing wrong.
Re-electing politicians under an ethical and legal cloud is a bipartisan phenomenon in New York politics. John Sampson, the former Senate Democratic leader in Albany, was charged with embezzlement, but won re-election a year later.
Republicans in Western New York had largely been keeping Collins at arm’s length over the last year as more GOP candidates filed to run for the party’s nomination.
Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, the Democrat Collins had unseated in 2012, called his decision to run while indicted a basic “lie” to voters.
“Whether you are a member of Congress or the president of the United States you have to be honest, you have to be truthful, you cannot abuse the power of your position and if you do that you can no longer serve,” she said.
Collins will be sentenced in January. It’s not yet known when his constituents will have representation in Washington again.