Democrats show up at Republican liar George Santos’s office to hand him an ethics complaint

A pair of New York Democrats went to Rep. George Santos’s office Tuesday morning to hand him a copy of the formal complaint they were making against him with the House Ethics Committee. 

Reps. Ritchie Torres and Daniel Goldman are asking the House Ethics panel to investigate whether their New York colleague on the other side of the aisle broke Ethics rules by failing to submit ‘timely, accurate and complete financial disclosure reports.’

But after admitting to ’embellishing’ his resume, Santos insisted to reporters Tuesday morning: ‘I have done nothing unethical.’ 

He said Torres and Goldman were ‘free to do whatever they want.’   

Torres and Goldman called Santos’ 2020 and 2022 financial disclosures ‘sparse and perplexing.’ 

‘Moreover, his own public statements have contradicted some information in the 2022 financial disclosure and confirmed that the 2022 financial disclosure failed to disclose other information,’ he added. 

Santos told reporters after a GOP conference meeting he expected he would be getting committee assignments from leadership, though he said he did not know which ones. 

 ‘I’ll take whatever I get. I’m not a picky person. I came here to serve the people.’

At the same time House Majority Leader Steve Scalise sidestepped questions on whether Santos should be a member of Congress in a news conference. 

After noting Santos was sworn in, he told reporters: ‘This is something that’s being handled internally.’ 

‘Obviously there are some concerns about what we have heard. So we’re going to have to sit down and talk with him about it,’ Scalise, R-La., added. 

House leadership has remained largely quiet on investigating Santos. 

Rep. Pete Aguilar, Democratic Caucus Chair, offered a more cynical view on Santos being sworn in despite the lies piling up:  ‘Kevin McCarthy owns George Santos– lock, stock, and barrel … that’s the only reason why he was seated, is to give GeorgeSantos that ability to vote for Kevin McCarthy.’   

Torres told reporters the complaint does not center on Santos’ lying on his resume but rather the timeliness of his financial disclosures. Candidates are required to submit financial forms by May 15 but Santos did not do so until September. 

Federal and local prosecutors are already probing Santos’s finances and financial disclosures, as well as the falsehoods he pushed on the campaign trail. Late last month New York Republican Rep. Nick LaLota joined a Democratic chorus of calls for a House Ethics investigation into sAntos.  

On Monday the nonprofit Campaign Legal Center (CLC) accused the New York Republican of illegally using campaign donations for personal expenses, including to pay rent, and for concealing the origins of the $700,000 Santos said he loaned to his campaign. 

In 2022, Santos said he loaned his campaign $705,000 from his personal riches. CLC questioned how Santos could have had such a stash saved up.

‘It is far from clear how he could have done so with his own funds, because financial disclosure reports indicate that Santos had only $55,000 to his name in 2020, and his claims of having earned millions of dollars in 2021 and 2022 from a supposed consulting business that he started in May 2021, Devolder Organization LLC (“Devolder LLC”), are vague, uncorroborated, and non-credible in light of his many previous lies.’

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

‘The concealed true source behind $705,000 in contributions to Santos’s campaign could be a corporation or foreign national — both of which are categorically barred from contributing to federal candidates.’

Santos has admitted in interviews to having ’embellished’ his resume and education history. 

The complaint also took issue with the dozens of expenses Santos’ campaign lists at $199.99 – just one penny below the $200 threshold when itemized receipts are required by the FEC.