WASHINGTON (AP) — A defiant Rep. George Santos is refusing to resign and warned on Thursday that his expulsion from Congress before being convicted in a court of law would establish a precedent that “is going to be the undoing of a lot of members of this body.”
The first-term Republican congressman from New York could well become just the sixth member of the House to have been expelled by colleagues. Republicans and Democrats have offered resolutions to remove him, and the House is expected to vote on one of them Friday.
While Santos survived two earlier expulsion efforts, a critical House Ethics Committee report released on Nov. 16 has convinced more members that his actions merit the House’s most severe punishment.
Santos preempted the vote with a press conference just outside the Capitol early Thursday. He noted that, of the previous expulsions, three were for disloyalty to the Union during the Civil War and two were for lawmakers who had been convicted in federal court. In short, he presented himself as someone who was being treated differently.
“This will haunt them in the future where mere allegations are sufficient to have members removed from office when duly elected by their people in their respective states and districts,” Santos said.
The House Ethics Committee said it had amassed “overwhelming evidence” of lawbreaking by Santos that had been sent to the Justice Department. The report concluded flatly that he “cannot be trusted” after a monthslong investigation into his conduct.
The panel said that Santos knowingly caused his campaign committee to file false or incomplete reports with the Federal Election Commission, used campaign funds for personal purposes and violated the Ethics in Government Act concerning financial disclosure statements filed with the House.
Santos also faces a 23-count federal indictment that alleges he stole the identities of campaign donors and then used their credit cards to make tens of thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges. Federal prosecutors say Santos, who has pleaded not guilty, wired some of the money to his personal bank account and used the rest to pad his campaign coffers.
Santos was a bright spot for the GOP when he won his election in November 2022, flipping a seat that had been held by the Democrats and helping Republicans take control of the House. But, soon after, reports began to emerge that Santos had lied about having Jewish ancestry, a career at top Wall Street firms and a college degree. He turned into a distraction and an embarrassment to his party.
In early March, the House Ethics Committee announced it was launching an investigation into Santos. That was followed in May when the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of New York unveiled a 13-count federal indictment that was later replaced with the 23-count indictment.
Santos easily survived an expulsion vote in early November, before the Ethics Committee unveiled its findings. The vote was 179 for expulsion and 213 against, with 41 others voting present or not voting.
Despite report, Rep. Santos refuses to resign
The first-term Republican congressman from New York could become just the sixth member of the House to have been expelled by colleagues. Republicans and Democrats have offered resolutions to remove Santos, who faces a federal indictment alleging he stole the identities of campaign donors and used their credit cards for unauthorized charges.
