Trent Staggs, the U.S. Senate candidate endorsed by President Trump, ended his speech at Monday night’s Republican primary debate by accusing his opponent, Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah), of insider trading.
On March 4, 2020, medical device maker Abbott Laboratories received federal funding to develop a COVID test. Curtis bought stock in the company that same day, Staggs said.
“These issues are happening at a time when the council should be thinking about their constituents. They’re only thinking about their own interests,” said Staggs, who is now Riverton’s mayor.
Trump endorses Utah Republican senator seeking to replace Romney: ‘He’ll be a great senator’
(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images/Rick Bowmer)
Staggs also said he signed a contract with the state of Utah that “prohibits members of Congress and their families from trading individual stocks.”
“We also want to stop lawmakers from retiring to become lobbyists and amass even more wealth,” he said.
After Staggs’ closing remarks, debate moderator Glenn Mills said they were running out of time and had to end the debate, to which Curtis responded, “Let me answer that.”
“As soon as possible,” Mills said.
“That’s very despicable,” Curtis said. “You wait for me to give you no answer and then you come up with something I can’t answer. You’ve accused me here tonight of a felony. I’m sure you have very good evidence. I want you to present evidence that I committed a felony.”
Utah Republicans select Trump-backed candidate to replace Sen. Romney, but primary still to come
Trent Staggs, mayor of Riverton, Utah, is a U.S. Senate candidate endorsed by former President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Hannah Schoenbaum)
The Salt Lake Tribune confirmed that Curtis bought stocks that had risen in value during the coronavirus pandemic, according to financial disclosures. In response to a reporter’s question, Curtis told the paper at the time that “the real story isn’t that bad.”
Staggs announced his candidacy, becoming the first to publicly challenge Romney, who has drawn the ire of many voters within his party over his advocacy and support for certain policies and bills. (Trent Staggs)
Click here to get the FOX News app
Curtis said most of the stock purchases, including those of Abbott Laboratories and BlackRock, were made by the mutual fund manager without his knowledge. The purchases came at key times, such as Abbott’s approval of a COVID-19 test and when BlackRock led bond purchases as the economy began a downward spiral.
Staggs, who is running to replace retiring Sen. Mitt Romney, gained notoriety in 2020 for his opposition to mask mandates. coronavirus pandemic.
In addition to having the backing of President Trump, Staggs also has the endorsement of Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky.
