Republicans will take control of the House next week, but there is a dark cloud in the sky, and it’s not the former president Donald Trump this time.
George Santos, a congressman-elect whose victory in a New York district last month was crucial to the GOP taking back the chamber, continues to assert that he would join Congress after admitting this week that he made up significant portions of his history. AWN reported Wednesday night that federal prosecutors in New York are looking into his money and local prosecutors are “looking into” his fabrications, adding to the rising number of investigations into his lying.
These lies, along with Santos’ resistance and the Republican leadership’s silence, along with numerous other ones that AWN’s KFile unearthed on Wednesday, are setting the GOP up for a contentious first week in power.
Some of Santos’ colleagues incoming congressman from the Empire State worry that his difficulties could overshadow Republicans’ rise to power because GOP leadership hasn’t even mentioned the controversy.
Rep.-elect Mike Lawler said in a statement on Wednesday that attempts to cast blame or downplay his actions “are just making things worse and a complete diversion from the business at hand.”
Rep.-elect Nick LaLota, who won a Long Island district, said in a statement on Tuesday that “New Yorkers deserve the truth” and that “House Republicans deserve an opportunity to govern without this distraction.” He also called for an ethics investigation “and, if necessary, law enforcement” involvement.
Kevin McCarthy, the leader of the House GOP, has been working to win the votes necessary to become the speaker of the House next month. He has not responded to AWN’s demands for comment regarding Santos. Republicans’ victory, which was smaller than he had anticipated and will give the conference’s more extreme members more authority, made that mission more difficult. In his already precarious attempt to gain 218 votes, asking Santos to step down might cost him one.
But by ignoring the New York Republican’s claims, McCarthy runs the risk of appearing to be out of touch with his party even before assuming the speakership.
As additional false allegations surface, prosecutors are “looking into” Santos’ lies.
New York was a bright light for the House Republicans in an otherwise dismal midterm performance, and it was the route they took to victory this year. The GOP managed to convert four Democratic seats in the Empire State, but fell short of their hoped-for “red wave”; one of those was the 3rd District, which Santos won by around 8 points.
Following a KFile analysis of remarks made during his congressional campaigns for the years 2022 and 2020, it was revealed on Wednesday that he had made even more untrue assertions regarding his background, employment history, and education. AWN has repeatedly asked Santos for comment, but he has not responded.
Despite his CV occasionally mentioning an education at Baruch College and New York University, Santos revealed to the New York Post on Monday that he didn’t “graduate from any institution of higher study.” He also acknowledged that, contrary to what he had previously said, he had never performed any work directly for Citigroup or Goldman Sachs, while he maintained that he had done so through his company, telling the Washington Post that it was a “bad choice of words” to claim he had done so.
The district attorney’s office in Nassau County declared on Wednesday that it is “looking into” the fabrications.
Republican district attorney Anne Donnelly stated in a statement that “no one is above the law” and that “if a crime was committed in this county, we will pursue it.”
A source with knowledge of the situation later on Wednesday informed AWN that prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York’s US attorney’s office are looking into Santos’ financial situation. Santos’ fortune and the more than $700,000 in loans he gave to his successful 2022 campaign have come under scrutiny.
Santos disclosed to Semafor on Wednesday how he earned money for “high net worth persons” by “capital introduction” and “deal making.” The investigation was initially covered by CBS News, and the US attorney’s office opted not to comment.
Republicans denounce Santos, but the quiet from the leadership is deafening.
Three newly elected House Republicans who all won in tough districts appear to be distancing themselves from a troublesome neighbour while also subtly seeking to open the door for leadership to speak out. The assertions made by Santos regarding his professed Jewish identity have drawn the worst criticism.
According to KFile on Wednesday, Santos said during a February interview on a Fox News internet programme that his maternal ancestors, who were Jewish, changed their last name from Zabrovsky. However, there is no proof of this allegation, and documents dispute it.
That came after last week’s KFile revelations that Santos’ claims that his grandparents “survived the Holocaust” as Ukrainian Jews who fled to Belgium and adopted a new surname are refuted by data from family trees created by genealogy websites, records on Jewish refugees, and interviews with numerous genealogists, among other sources.
His argument has already given rise to ridicule.