Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., reportedly has talked up an Australian drug company company on Capitol Hill, a move some of his colleagues view as inappropriate.
According to a report in The Hill, Collins has earned some wealth through investing in Innate Immunotherapeutics, which has developed a drug to fight advanced multiple sclerosis. Lawmakers who spoke to The Hill anonymously said Collins had urged them to purchase the stock, saying it would make them a lot of money.
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Collins, whose net worth is estimated at $66 million, previously received negative publicity earlier this year after reporters overheard him talking about “how many millionaires I’ve made in Buffalo the past few months.” Collins has said that the quote was taken out of context during a private phone call he was having in which he was joking with a friend and investor.
The Hill interviewed half a dozen lawmakers who have said that they have heard Collins speaking about Innate Immunotherapeutics at official meetings and in informal settings on the Hill.
According to the report, Collins denied he had ever recruited members of Congress to buy Innate stock or bragged about making them money.
“I never once talked about that. … I’ve never encouraged anyone to buy the stock. Ever,” he said. “I’ve presented opportunities in Buffalo. I’ve said, ‘Here’s an opportunity. Listen. Read. Study. Make a decision.’ That’s the only thing I ever did, and that was in Buffalo.”
He added, however, that he had talked about Innate to colleagues, saying it was likely to do well and that the drug it is working on would be good for patients.
“I talk about it at every turn, just like you talk about your kids hitting a home run and your daughter getting into law school,” he said. “In all the things that I’ve done in my business career, I’m most proud of this.”
