Richard Burr, the Republican chairman of the US Senate Intelligence Committee, will step down due to an ongoing insider trading probe. Burr stated that he chose to do so in good faith. He doesn’t want the investigation to divert the attention of the committee from its work.
In addition, the FBI has seized Mr. Burr’s phone as part of the investigation. The senator, who denied misconduct, allegedly used insider information to prevent losses from coronavirus.
In February, he and his wife sold as many as $1.7 m (£1.4 m) in stock. This was shortly before stocks plummeted amid predictions of an economic recession. Besides, trading based on non-public information obtained during official duties is illegal for members of Congress.
Likewise, two other Republican senators, Oklahoma’s James Inhofe and Kelly Loeffler of Georgia, and also California’s Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, all sold shares prior to the slump. However, they are not under any form of investigation.
Nevertheless, Ms. Feinstein confirmed she had addressed FBI inquiries about her husband’s trades.
Why is Burr stepping down?
Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said that Mr. Burr called him to tell him of his intention to step aside temporarily.
More so, they decided that this move is in the committee’s best interests, which would be effective tomorrow [Friday] at the end of the day. Mr. McConnell said in a statement.
Mr. Burr said, “The role of the Intelligence Committee and its leaders are too critical to risk hampering in any way.
He said, “I think this move is important in order to allow the Committee to continue its critical work without external distractions.” Also, he handed over his mobile phone to the authorities after federal agents issued a search warrant at his residence in Washington, DC.
What are the allegations?
In March, the justice department started investigating Mr. Burr, 64.
Besides, public documents first reported by ProPublica revealed that between late January and mid-February, the senator sold over 30 stocks.
Some of the stocks were in markets destroyed by the coronavirus outbreak. They include hotels, restaurants, and transportation industries.
Mr. Burr, as chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, gets almost daily briefings on threats to US national security. He justified the transactions, claiming he had been “just depending on mainstream press accounts” to direct his sale decision.
However, he was criticized for publicly undermining the severity of the virus even as he sold equities privately. Moreover, he warned the private North Carolina business group of the serious risks it posed.
Mr. Burr’s lawyer, Alice Fisher, stated in March that the senator respected the investigation by the justice department.
Meanwhile, she states that it is clear from the law that every American-including senator-may invests in the stock market. But it should be based on public information, as Senator Burr did.
Much of Mr. Burr’s sales pictured on 13 February. That was shortly before his address to the wealthy business constituents’ group about the severe economic impacts of the coronavirus—the same period when the Trump administration was openly downplaying the threat.
In an audio recording obtained by the US outlet National Public Radio (NPR), he told the group to regulate their travels. Mr. Burr blamed the NPR for “misrepresenting” his speech.
Who is Richard Burr?
First elected to the Senate in 2004, he headed the Senate Security Committee to investigate the interference of Russian in the 2016 presidential election.
The committee accepted the conclusions of the intelligence community that Russia had interfered on behalf of Donald Trump.
Mr. Burr’s six-year tenure ends in 2023, and he does not intend to run for re-election, says Associated Press.
