Republican liar George Santos gets FIRST official ethics complaint

A formal complaint was filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) against Representative George Santos for numerous campaign finance violations.

In a civil lawsuit filed Monday, the nonprofit Campaign Legal Center (CLC) accused the New York Republican of illegally using campaign donations for personal expenses, including paying rent, and concealing the source of the $700,000. that Santos said he lent to his campaign.

In 2022, Santos said he lent his campaign $705,000 from his personal wealth. CLC questioned how Santos could have saved so much money.

‘It is far from clear how he could have done it with his own funds, because financial disclosure reports indicate that Santos had just $55,000 to his name in 2020,4 and his claims to have made millions of dollars in 2021 and 2022 from an alleged consulting business that began in May 2021, Devolder Organization LLC (“Devolder LLC”), are vague, unsubstantiated and not credible in light of their many prior lies.’

The complaint says the circumstances indicate that Devolder was used to illegally funnel money to the Santos campaign. The FEC complaint said the possible scheme could include meddling in foreign elections.

“The real hidden source behind $705,000 in Santos campaign contributions could be a corporation or a foreign citizen, both of whom are categorically prohibited from contributing to federal candidates.”

Santos has admitted in interviews to having ‘beautified’ his resume and educational record.

The complaint also questioned the dozens of expenses that the Santos campaign lists at $199.99, just one cent below the $200 threshold when the FEC requires itemized receipts.

CLC raised suspicions that the Santos campaign reported a bill of exactly $199.99 at Il Bacco Restaurant in Little Neck, New York on seven different occasions.

The campaign reported five different Uber trips that conveniently totaled $199.99, four different flights on Delta airlines, and three separate Best Buy purchases that totaled the same.

On October 13, 2021, Santos reported a $199.99 hotel stay at Miami’s W Hotel South Beach, but the cheapest hotel room available for a midweek stay that week is priced at over $700.

The campaign also reported a parking charge of $199.99 at New York’s JFK airport, but there is no mix of charges at that parking lot that would end up at $99.99. You reported a $199.99 charge for CLEAR ID verification at the airport, but CLEAR’s standard annual membership is $189.28.

CLC notes that Santos listed six expenses totaling $13,500 that were listed as “staff apartment rent,” but a New York Times report found that Santos himself had been living there.

“A neighbor said Santos himself had been living there for months, and two others said they had seen Santos and her husband come and go,” the Times reported.

A spokesman for Santos declined to comment on the new complaint.

Meanwhile, a former aide to Trump strategist Steve Bannon will join Santos’ staff on Capitol Hill.

Vish Burra, who worked as a producer on Bannon’s “War Room” podcast, will join Santos’ staff as director of operations, according to Newsday.

Burra also serves as executive director of the New York Republican Youth Club, which hosted Santos at a gala last month along with Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and members of the far-right Freedom Party of Austria. , founded by a former Nazi SS officer, according to Newsday. .