Watchdog Group Asks FEC to Investigate Gay GOP Rep. George Santos
(CNN) -- A campaign watchdog group is filing a complaint Monday with the Federal Election Commission, accusing newly sworn-in Rep.
George Santos of illegally using campaign funds to pay personal expenses and of concealing the source of more than $700,000 that the New York Republican plowed into his election bid.The Campaign Legal Center's complaint also alleges that the embattled congressman's campaign falsified how it spent campaign funds, citing dozens of disbursements of exactly $199.99 -- one penny below the threshold above which campaigns are required to retain receipts.The complaint marks the latest potential legal complication for Santos, who has been widely criticized for his fabrications about his biography.
Federal prosecutors are investigating his finances, and law enforcement officials in Brazil have said they will reinstate fraud charges against him, related to a stolen checkbook in 2008.
And in a separate action Monday, American Bridge 21st Century, a group aligned with Democrats, announced it had filed a complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics, urging an investigation of the financial disclosure reports Santos filed with the US House of Representatives as a candidate."George Santos has lied to voters about a lot of things, but while lying about your background might not be illegal, deceiving voters about your campaign's funding and spending is a serious violation of federal law," Adav Noti, the Campaign Legal Center's senior vice president, said in a statement.Santos' personal lawyer, Joe Murray, declined to comment on Monday, saying he had not seen the complaint.
