McCarthy stands by Santos and doesn't call for his resignation

Rep. George Santos made false statements on multiple financial disclosure reports to the House of Representatives, according to an indictment.

Congressional candidates are required to file sworn financial disclosers before an election that give a full accounting of that candidate’s finances, such as their assets and income. 

As part of his first congressional race in 2020, Santos filed two disclosures with the House that contained false statements, according to the indictment. Santos claimed in the reports that he had earned $55,000 in salary, commission and bonuses from a company, identified in the indictment only as “Company #2.”

Santos also reported in the 2020 disclosure that the only compensation he received exceeding $5,000 from a single source was an “unspecified commission bonus from Company #2.”

Prosecutors say, however, that Santos only received $27,555 from Company #2. Santos also allegedly failed to disclose altogether a salary he earned from an unidentified investment firm. 

The behavior continued when Santos filed his 2022 disclosure in the election, which he went on to win, according to the indictment.

Santos wrote on the form that in 2021 and 2022, his “earned income consisted of $750,000 in salary from the Devolder Organization LLC,” his “unearned income included dividends from the Devolder Organization LLC valued at between $1,000,001 and $5,000,000” and that “he had no compensation exceeding $5,000 from a single source in which he had an ownership interest.”

The then-candidate also claimed on the 2022 form that he “owned a checking account with deposits totaling between $100,001 and $250,000” and “a savings account with deposits totaling between $1,000,001 and $5,000,000,” prosecutors said.

“Contrary to these statements, in truth and in fact, as Santos then and there well knew and believed, he had not received from the Devolder Organization LLC the reported amounts of salary or dividends; he did not maintain checking or savings accounts with deposits in the reported amounts; and he received approximately $28,107 in income from (an investment firm Santos worked at) and approximately $20,304 in unemployment insurance benefits from (New York) during the same reporting period, all of which he failed to report as required,” according to the indictment.