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GOP NY Rep. Collins Arrested For Corruption

GOP Rep. Chris Collins charged with securities fraud. Politico: "Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.), the first member of Congress to back President Donald Trump before the 2016 election, was indicted Wednesday by federal prosecutors and charged with fraud in connection to an alleged insider-trading scheme linked to his investments in an Australian biotech firm. The third-term congressman, who represents a district in western New York, had been under scrutiny from the Office of Congressional Ethics for his connection to the company, Innate Immunotherapeutics. He was the company's largest shareholder and served on its board. Prosecutors say that in 2017, Collins passed inside information to his son, Cameron, who passed it to another alleged conspirator, Stephen Zarsky, father of Cameron Collins' fiancee. The three — who were arraigned Wednesday afternoon in New York and pleaded not guilty to charges of securities fraud, wire fraud and making false statements to the FBI — and other family and friends avoided about $768,000 in losses as a result of the inside information, prosecutors allege."

Trump's Mar-A-Lago Cronies Force Agenda At VA

The Shadow Rulers of the VA. ProPublica: "Shortly after Peter O’Rourke became chief of staff for the Department of Veterans Affairs, he received an email from Bruce Moskowitz with his input on a new mental health initiative for the VA. 'Received,' O’Rourke replied. 'I will begin a project plan and develop a timeline for action.' O’Rourke treated the email as an order, but Moskowitz is not his boss. In fact, he is not even a government official. Moskowitz is a Palm Beach doctor who helps wealthy people obtain high-service 'concierge' medical care. More to the point, he is one-third of an informal council that is exerting sweeping influence on the VA from Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump’s private club in Palm Beach, Florida. The troika is led by Ike Perlmutter, the reclusive chairman of Marvel Entertainment, who is a longtime acquaintance of President Trump’s. The third member is a lawyer named Marc Sherman. None of them has ever served in the U.S. military or government."

Uncounted Votes Turn Up In OH

Hundreds of uncounted votes turn up in Ohio. USA Today: "The tight race between Democrat Danny O'Connor and Republican Troy Balderson just got tighter. Election officials in Franklin County found 588 previously uncounted votes in a Columbus suburb. The result: O'Connor had a net gain of 190 votes, bringing the race's margin down to 1,564. 'The votes from a portion of one voting location had not been processed into the tabulation system,' according to a Franklin County Board of Elections news release. Balderson declared victory Tuesday night in the closely watched congressional district race in central Ohio. But O'Connor says he's waiting for all votes to be counted. That includes 3,435 provisional ballots and 5,048 absentee ballots, which will be tabulated by Aug. 24."

Whitmer Shows Changing Face Of MI Dems

If Gretchen Whitmer is ‘the establishment,’ progressives are winning. ThinkProgress: "If you followed the national political coverage of Tuesday night’s Michigan gubernatorial primaries, you probably think that the Bernie Sanders wing of the Democratic Party just got pwned. The Democratic primary pitted Gretchen Whitmer, a longtime state lawmaker and legislative leader, against Abdul El-Sayed, a young, wonky physician who led Detroit’s health department. So when Whitmer beat El-Sayed by more than 20 points on Tuesday, her victory was quickly framed as a defeat for the left. Well, maybe. Yes, the leftmost candidate did not win in Michigan. If you are a Sanders Democrat or a Democratic Socialist, you have every right to be disappointed that the candidate whose values most closely align with yours did not prevail on Tuesday. It is also true, however, that the “establishment” candidate ran on a platform that is pretty far to the left, and much further than mainline Democrats were willing to go just a few years ago."

More from OurFuture.org:

Pohutsky’s Win Gives Voice To Michigan’s Real Voters. Erik Shelley: "Voters in Michigan’s 19th district will have an alternative to the career politicians they are used to seeing on ballot in November: the microbiologist won the Democratic nomination in the Tuesday primary election. She was one of 5 aspiring legislators who were endorsed by the Michigan People’s Campaign at their 'People’s Voice Caucus' in July. The MPC endorsement didn’t come with a large check, but rather the pledge of voting members to do the work needed to get their candidate elected. By the time the polls closed Tuesday, they had knocked on 8,500 doors, talking to voters across the state. Over the next 90 days, MPC will knock on 100,000 doors, and have 25,000 more conversations with people about real issues that affect their lives every day. 'Anyone who wants to become the next Governor of Michigan would do well to recognize what motivates these voters,' said Bartosz Kumor, Director of Movement Politics for MPC."

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