NEW YORK (AP) — Of all the questions swirling around U.S. Rep. George Santos, one of the most serious has been how he amassed the personal fortune he claimed to have used to finance his campaign. The Republican fabulist filed new campaign finance reports this week that only elevated the confusion over whether that money was all his, or came from some other source.
Santos’ campaign provided the Federal Election Commission amended versions Tuesday of reports covering the last two years, including forms that gave contradictory accounts of whether money he lent his campaign — including a half-million-dollar loan last spring— came out of his own pocket.
The new reports raise fresh questions about Santos, who has admitted fabricating key parts of his life story and worked in recent years as a salesman for a company accused of running a Ponzi scheme.
Questioned by reporters Wednesday on Capitol Hill, the first-year congressman from New York again refused to answer questions and denied personal involvement in amending the campaign finance reports.
“Let’s make it very clear. I don’t amend anything. I don’t touch any of my FEC stuff, so don’t be disingenuous and report that I did,” Santos said. “Every campaign hires fiduciaries, so I’m not aware of that answer, but we will have an answer for the press regarding the amendments from yesterday.”
Since announcing his candidacy in 2021, Santos has reported loaning his campaign organization $705,000, accounting…
