Jorge Santos (RNY) talks to other members as the search for speaker continues during a meeting of the 118th Congress at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, Friday, Jan. 6, 2023.
Jabin Botsford | The Washington Post | Getty Images
The campaign of embattled Republican Representative Jorge Santos is facing new scrutiny from the Federal Election Commission after a man listed as Santos’ campaign treasurer refused to take the job.
FEC letter The request for more information about the controversy marked the latest attempt to extract the truth from Santos, a freshman lawmaker from New York who has admitted fabricating key details of his background but has been implicated in Multiple scandals and investigations,
“It has come to the attention of the Federal Election Commission that you have failed to include true, correct, or complete treasurer information in recent filings,” read the letter written Thursday.
It was addressed to Santos’ campaign and Thomas Datwiler, the person listed as its treasurer in an amended form filed Wednesday, who appeared to replace Santos’ longtime treasurer, Nancy Marks.
But Derek Ross, an attorney for Dettwiler, quickly disputed that campaign filing.
Ross said in a statement at the time, “On Monday, we informed the Santos campaign that Mr. Datwiler will not be taking over as Treasurer.” “And there appears to be some disconnect between that conversation and this filing.”
In a phone call with CNBC on Friday, Ross said he was working with the FEC to clear up the confusion, calling it “either a miscommunication or something.”
The attorney said he did not try to contact the Santos campaign because it “seems like a waste of time.”
“If you know who’s in charge of the campaign right now and how to get to them, let me know,” Ross said.
A spokeswoman for Santos’ office declined to comment on his campaign or personal matters. An attorney for Santos did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on the FEC’s letter.
Several other political committees affiliated with Santos also received the same letter listing Datwiler as the new treasurer, news outlets reported.
The letter gave the Santos campaign a March 2 deadline to respond. The FEC warned that “knowingly and knowingly making any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation to a federal government agency” would lead to criminal charges.
Santos has vowed to serve out his full term in office, rejecting bipartisan calls for his resignation. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said this week that Santos would be removed from Congress only if the House Ethics Committee determines he broke the law.
McCarthy, who leads a narrow GOP majority that could thin further if Santos leaves Congress, told NBC News Friday afternoon that he has not met alone with Santos.