Originally Published: October 31, 2023 9:54 a.m.
It was just before midnight on December 27, 2021, and Jen Remauro had a message for Rep. George Santos (R-NY). The Republican was less than a year away from his victory in a New York congressional election that would trigger a shocking series of scandals and criminal charges. But behind the scenes, there was already plenty of drama.
"Please keep me out of your spew," Remauro wrote in a text to Santos, which she provided to TPM.
At the time, Remauro was the campaign manager for Tina Forte, a far-right candidate who has made two quixotic challenges to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). In her text, Remauro explained that she'd heard rumors Santos was badmouthing her and her mother, Staten Island politico Leticia Remauro. As she warned Santos not to malign her, Remauro launched an attack of her own. She accused the future congressman of having misled Forte by steering her towards a consulting firm, Red Strategies USA, LLC, which subsequently received over $100,000 from the campaign, without disclosing that he was actually one of the people behind the business.
"People are saying you keep saying my mother and I have ruined Tina's campaign. You know you own Red Strategies and it's public knowledge. You pretended you didn't even know the company when you actually own the company," Remauro added. "YOU fucked her campaign up and you're lucky I'm not vindictive. You played me and Tina and I'll hand that to you but stop dragging my name in the mud."
"Me???? Wow," Santos replied. "Wait a freaking minute!"
The text messages that appear throughout this article were provided by Remauro to TPM. Apart from adding periods for clarity, we have not altered the content of the messages, including for spelling or grammatical errors. Santos, who has consistently denied any wrongdoing, did not respond to TPM's requests for comment.
And while it's not clear whether Santos simply "owned" Red Strategies, as Remauro claimed in the Dec. 27 text exchange, he has extensive links to the firm's management structure. Florida corporate records indicate the authorized members that make up the firm's management structure are all other companies including "Devolder Organization LLC," a business created and controlled by Santos that he has described as his "family's firm." The other companies in the ownership of Red Strategies are all part of an interconnected network of businesses tied to Santos, his ex-campaign treasurer Nancy Marks, and former executives at Harbor City, an investment company where Santos previously worked. Harbor City Capital Corp. has been described by the Securities and Exchange Commission as "a classic ponzi scheme." Most of the complex network of companies tied to Santos and the Harbor City executives were based in a nondescript Florida office park.
Based on the texts Remauro provided to TPM, the pair had an extended, contentious exchange filled with insults and false claims from Santos. During the conversation, Santos attempted to defend himself as "a business man." Following his feud with Remauro, Santos went on to win election to Congress, was revealed to have told a series of lies about his personal biography while running for office, and was ultimately indicted on federal charges related to his personal finances and his election operation. And now, TPM has learned, congressional investigators have also apparently taken interest in Remauro's allegations.
Remauro, who is no longer working with Forte, told TPM she was contacted by House Ethics Committee investigators about Santos and is scheduled to speak with them about her Santos experience next month. Forte declined to comment and referred TPM to Brian Graham, her current campaign manager. Graham confirmed Forte's campaign had been contacted by the committee as well in an email where he answered a series of written questions.
"All information has been sent to them as requested," Graham said of the Ethics Committee's query.
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