In debt and now with 10 new indictment charges, a group of House Republicans from New York State are trying to expel Rep. George Santos from Congress as the Queens legislator faces a total 23-count superseding indictment charging him with using donors’ credit card information without authorization and more.
Rep. Anthony D’Esposito is the main sponsor of the resolution for expulsion, which is co-sponsored by fellow Republicans Nick LaLota, Mike Lawler, Marc Molinaro, Nick Langworthy, and Brandon Williams.
Santos’ intensifying troubles stem from a recent Federal Election Commission disclosure that revealed the congressman’s re-election campaign is grappling with debt, with a bank balance of under $23,000 and unpaid bills exceeding $123,000.
Federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York slapped Santos with 10 additional charges in the new indictment last week, including conspiracy, falsification of records, aggravated identity theft, and additional charges of wire fraud and making a false statement.
If convicted of the top charges, he could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Among the new allegations are accusations that Santos fraudulently charged the credit cards of his contributors, falsely reported loans to his campaign and inflated his contribution numbers.
Santos used his donors’ credit cards “repeatedly without their authorization,” the indictment said, to charge more than $44,000 to his campaign over several months without their knowledge and subsequently transferred the “vast majority” of these funds into his own personal bank account. In a specific instance, Santos charged $12,000 to a contributor’s credit card, according to prosecutors.
The second indictment included other new charges such as conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, access device fraud, false statements to the Federal Election Commission and falsifying records to obstruct the commission.
Santos is accused of falsely reporting to the FEC that he had loaned his own campaign $500,000 when he actually hadn’t given anything at all and had under $8,000 in the bank, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The fake loan was an attempt to convince Republican Party officials that he was a serious candidate, worth their financial support, the indictment said.
Santos is charged with engaging in a complex fraud scheme in which he is alleged to have deceived both his donors and family members.
In a specific case cited in the indictment, Santos obtained the credit card details of a campaign contributor who had already contributed $5,800. He allegedly used this information to make unauthorized charges amounting to an additional $15,800. These charges were in excess of the contribution limits established by federal law. According to prosecutors, Santos attributed these additional payments to his unsuspecting relatives.
Meanwhile, Santos’ re-election campaign is bleeding funds.
During the third quarter from July to September, the campaign reported minimal contributions of $674, refunded $17,200 to 14 contributors, and allocated $42,000 to operational costs, as disclosed in Santos’ filing with the Federal Election Commission.
Nancy Marks, the former treasurer for the Santos campaign, admitted guilt in a fraud conspiracy case in federal court on Oct. 5, implicating him in a scheme to enhance his campaign finance reports using a fictitious loan and fake donors.
Marks was involved in Santos’ two congressional campaigns.
In her statement to the judge, Marks gave an overview of a scheme devised to deceive Republican Party officials. The goal was to secure their backing for Santos, who had trouble obtaining financial support for his second congressional campaign after an earlier electoral defeat.
Reading from a prepared statement, Marks disclosed that she had submitted a fabricated roster to the FEC, claiming that individuals had made substantial donations to the campaign. According to prosecutors, this list included the names of several individuals from both Santos’ and Marks’ families.
“George Santos’ many deceptions coupled with the ever-expanding legal case against him further strengthen my long-held belief that he is unfit to serve in Congress, and for that reason, I will be sponsoring a resolution to immediately expel George Santos from the House of Representatives,” said D’Esposito.
The lawmakers have called for Santos to be expelled due to the criminal charges he faces and revelations that he fabricated large parts of his résumé.
“Amidst this chaotic mix, more wrenches are being thrown, further complication matters,” Santos wrote in a statement. “It’s disheartening to witness my colleagues prioritize their campaigns over the essential work that needs to be done.”
Democrats had previously moved to expel Santos in May after he was initially charged, but Republicans voted to refer their motion to the Ethics Committee instead of ousting him.
At the time, Kevin McCarthy, who was still House speaker, maintained that Santos warranted a chance to defend himself in court. Critics also accused the then-speaker of seeking to preserve Santos’s vote in a narrowly divided House. Although some New York Republicans, including D’Esposito, had already called for his resignation, McCarthy successfully persuaded all of them to redirect the resolution to the House Ethics Committee for further assessment.
Santos warned that being expelled from the House before being found guilty in a criminal investigation “will set a dangerous precedent” and “will do nothing other than erase the voices of the electorate.”
“George Santos belongs in federal prison, not in the halls of Congress. Since December, I have called on him to resign. While I would have preferred the Ethics Committee to deliver its findings any time in the last 147 days since it was referred this case, expulsion is now the necessary next step,” said LaLota.
Santos pleaded not guilty to the initial May indictment and has said he will do the same for the new one.
Expelling Santos from the House would require the support of two-thirds of its members. The lack of a permanent House speaker adds a complication for proponents of expelling Santos, as House business is effectively on hold until a new speaker is elected.
