House Ethics Committee Finds ‘Substantial Evidence’ of Wrongdoing by George Santos, Says He ‘Can’t Be Trusted’

The committee claims to have evidence of “uncharged and unlawful conduct” by the indicted Republican, and plans to refer its findings to the Department of Justice

The House Ethics Committee investigating New York Rep. George Santos said on Thursday that it found “substantial evidence” of wrongdoing by the freshman congressman, including that he knowingly committed fraud and used campaign funds for his own personal purposes.

In a press release, House Ethics says that the subcommittee investigating 35-year-old 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.”

The report is released amid an ongoing criminal investigation into Santos, though the committee says it has evidence of “additional uncharged and unlawful conduct” by the Republican, which it recommends referring to the Department of Justice.

On Wednesday, chairman Michael Guest said the committee would not recommend any punishment for 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.

Much of the initial controversy surrounding Santos stemmed from a sprawling New York Times report published shortly after his election, which found that a large portion of his biography could not be substantiated.

And while allegations that he had dramatically embellished his resume and misled voters about his heritage were the original points of concern, other questions were raised about his finances and campaign disclosures.

Within weeks, the bombshell allegations had not only sparked bipartisan backlash, but prompted investigations by the Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, Nassau County District Attorney’s Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation.
In May, Santos was arrested and indicted on 13 criminal counts alleging fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds, and making false statements; in October, prosecutors announced they had added 10 new charges to the indictment, bringing the total number of criminal counts against him to 23.

A recent effort to expel Santos from Congress, led by New York Republicans, failed in the House, though as Guest suggested, more efforts could soon be underway, particularly as two former aides to the Santos campaign have pleaded guilty to fraud charges in recent months.

Santos has so far refused to resign from Congress and in May, he filed paperwork to run for reelection in 2024.

source: people.com