Congressman Reed ends silence over arrest of Rep. Chris Collins

Rep. Tom Reed

Congressman Tom Reed knew full well that when his media call began this afternoon at 1:15 p.m., he was going to be asked about Wednesday's arrest of fellow NY congressman Chris Collins on insider trading charges. Rep. Reed began his call by saying "obviously, there are very serious allegations. We take these allegations very seriously...these are very troublesome to see and to hear. I will defer to Chris and his family to deal with this issue."
However, reporters weren't satisfied.
Dave McKinley of WGRZ-TV in Buffalo asked Reed, "Do you think he (Collins) should step away?"
Reed: "It really is up to him and his family. Ultimately, I believe his decision has been made to stay in the race and it's up to the voters and that's the way it should be and I trust the wisdom of those voters."
McKinley pushed more, asking Reed if he thought it would be difficult for Collins to serve the needs of his district with the criminal charges hanging over his head and the commitment it would take to fight...
Reed: The concern you raised in that question is a legitimate concern."
McKinley pushed more, asking HOW difficult is it.
Reed: "Well, you know obviously havin'...ahhh...this type of allegation...there is something that would take some time and resources to deal with...but, as we deal with this and these allegations I wanna make sure people know that we take them very serious...that...we as members are no different than any other person across America and need to be held accountable to the laws of the land. (And) there are processes in place that will make sure that these are pursued and these matters are addressed appropriately and at the end of the day if he remains on the ballot the voters will ultimately have there voice to control the situation going forward.
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Background: Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced Wednesday the arrests of CHRISTOPHER COLLINS, a Congressman representing the 27th District of New York, CAMERON COLLINS, the son of CHRISTOPHER COLLINS, and STEPHEN ZARSKY, the father of CAMERON COLLINS’s fiancée, on charges of participating in a scheme to commit insider trading relating to securities of Innate Immunotherapeutics (“Innate”), an Australian biotechnology company on whose Board of Directors CHRISTOPHER COLLINS served. Read more...