Republican Rep. George Santos of New York speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill in May 2023.Photo:Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty
Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty
House Ethics revealed on Thursday morning that the subcommittee investigating Santos “unanimously concluded that there was substantial evidence” that he: “knowingly caused his campaign committee to file false or incomplete reports with the Federal Election Commission; used campaign funds for personal purposes; engaged in fraudulent conduct … and engaged in knowing and willful violations of the Ethics in Government Act as it relates to his Financial Disclosure (FD) Statements filed with the House.”
The first line of the committee’s report makes clear that its findings are damning, stating, “Representative George Santos cannot be trusted. At nearly every opportunity, he placed his desire for private gain above his duty to uphold the Constitution, federal law, and ethical principles.”
On Wednesday, chairman Michael Guest said the committeewould not directly recommend any punishmentfor Santos, and would instead release a report summarizing its monthslong probe into Santos and allow lawmakers to come to their own conclusions.
Guest added that recommending sanctions against Santos “would have taken several more months," and that he expects there will be a subsequent expulsion effort following the release of the report.
Below, the most shocking allegations inthe committee’s report.
New York Rep. George Santos.Jackie Molloy/Bloomberg via Getty
Santos ‘blatantly stole’ from his own campaign — to pay for Botox, Sephora and OnlyFans
The report details how many of Santos' campaign expenditures appear unrelated to campaign matters, like a $1,500 purchase made in 2020, on the campaign debit card, at a medical spa and noted as “Botox” in expense reports. Two other charges on the campaign debit card — one for $1,400 and one for $1,029.30 — also appear to have gone toward Botox.
Elsewhere in the report, the committee details how a $50,000 campaign donation was deposited into Santos’ personal accounts, with the funds then being used to “pay down personal credit card bills and other debt; make a $4,127.80 purchase at Hermes; and for smaller purchases at OnlyFans; Sephora; and for meals and for parking.”
The report also details how Santos told campaign staffers he drove a luxury vehicle despite that he did not: “At no point does Representative Santos appear to have owned a Maserati, despite telling campaign staff otherwise.”
Santos was a ‘knowing and active participant’ in the fraud
While Santos has denied any wrongdoing, those in his orbit have in recent weeks admitted to participating in fraud (two former staffers with his campaign, for instance, havepleaded guilty to criminal chargesin recent months). According to the committee, Santos was in on the scheme.
“Despite his attempts to blame others for much of the misconduct,” the report alleges, “Representative Santos was a knowing and active participant in the wrongdoing.”
From the report: “Representative Santos sought to fraudulently exploit every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit.”
The committee alleges that, in addition to lying in order to secure campaign donations, the Republican used his connections to high value donors “to obtain additional funds for himself through fraudulent or otherwise questionable business dealings.”
Freshman Congressman George Santos.Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images
What to Know About George Santos
Much of the initial controversy surrounding Santos stemmed from a sprawlingNew York Timesreport published shortly after his election, which found that a large portion of his biography could not be substantiated.
And while allegations that he had dramaticallyembellished his resumeand misled voters about his heritage were the original points of concern, other questions were raised about his finances and campaign disclosures.
In May, Santos wasarrested and indictedon13 criminal countsalleging fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds, and making false statements; in October, prosecutors announced they hadadded 10 new chargesto the indictment, bringing the total number of criminal counts against him to 23.
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Santos has so far refused to resign from Congress, but ended his2024 reelection campaignon Thursday.
source: people.com
