The plot thickens regarding campaign finance fraud allegations.
GOP Rep. George Santos, the newly elected House member from New York who has admitted to fabricating his work and education history, is now being accused of extensive campaign finance violations.
Monday’s allegations come in a complaint the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center filed with the Federal Election Commission, which could proceed with a formal investigation into Santos. The complaint broadly accuses Santos ― who is
already facing other federal and local investigations into lies about his background ― of using his 2022 campaign funds to cover personal needs, lying about how his campaign spent money and hiding the origin of his campaign funds.
Santos, the new complaint claims, has been “knowingly and willfully concealing the true sources of his campaign’s funding, misrepresenting how his campaign spent its money, and illegally paying for personal expenses with campaign funds. Particularly in light of Santos’s mountain of lies about his life and qualifications for office, the Commission should thoroughly investigate what appear to be equally brazen lies about how his campaign raised and spent money.”
Santos’ campaign finance reports contain numerous red flags, the watchdog notes. One is his claim that he loaned $705,000 to his own campaign, even though 2020 records indicate he only had $55,000 to his name. His claims that he earned millions in 2021 and 2022 from a consulting business are “vague, uncorroborated, and non-credible in light of his many previous lies,” the group alleges.
The FEC last week demanded that Santos provide more information about contributions and certain donors to his campaign,
according to CNN.
In its complaint, the Campaign Legal Center also flagged dozens of expenses in Santos’ records totaling exactly $199.99 ― just one cent under the amount for which the FEC requires itemized receipts.
“The sheer number of these just-under-$200 disbursements is implausible,” the group says, “and some payments appear to be impossible given the nature of the item or service covered.”
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/george-santos-campaign-violations_n_63bc4cbce4b0ae9de1c05ada