by Rep. George Santos (RN.Y.) is approaching another vote that could expel him from Congress, a move that follows a series of lies and accusations that have gotten the Republican into trouble.
Earlier this year, Santos escaped two attempts to expel him from Congress, followed by a third on November 1. He had previously admitted to lying about aspects of his identity and this year he was indicted on criminal charges related to his campaign finances.
More recently, a House ethics report was released following an investigation into the representative, exposing even more alarming actions from his past.
The lies and accusations piled up and now Santos faces another expulsion vote on Thursday.
Since the first expulsion vote, Santos announced that he will not run for re-election and said that being expelled from Congress would be a “badge of honor.”
From lies about a secret drag queen past to misuse of campaign finances, Santos has amassed a list of lies and accusations both serious and ridiculous. Here are six wild moments ahead in the saga surrounding the fall of Santos.
Your resume? All lies.
Santos dragged a series of lies about his college education, work history, and identity throughout his 2021 election campaign, and he was finally caught this year.
As a candidate for representative of New York, Santos reclaimed who had graduated summa cum laude from Baruch College, had an MBA from New York University, worked for Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, and was of Jewish heritage.
All of these claims, among others, were refuted. Last year he admitted that the claims were false and he described some of them as “embellishments” to your resume.
His anti-LGBTQ stance was challenged by the revelation of his drag queen past.
While there is nothing wrong with being in drag, it becomes a problem when you are a member of Congress who vehemently supports anti-LGBTQ legislation. Santos’ conservative stance came under fire after reports emerged showing that he performed in Brazilian drag shows.
In January, a Brazilian drag performer posted a photo on social media of herself with another person dressed in drag, who she claimed was Santos. The New York congressman quickly denied the claims and wrote in a mail in X that the reports were “categorically false” and “scandalous.”
“The media’s most recent obsession with claiming that I am a drag queen or that I ‘act’ like a drag queen is categorically false,” she wrote on X. “The media continues to make outrageous claims about my life as I work to deliver results. This will not distract or disturb me.”
But when journalists pressed him on the matter, Santos appeared to backtrack and insinuate that he was the one in the photo posted by the drag performer.
“No, I wasn’t a drag queen in Brazil, guys. I was young and I had fun at a festival. Sue me for having a life,” Santos told reporters in January. according to NBC News.
Santos allegedly faked an animal charity and defrauded a disabled veteran and his sick service dog.
In January, a disabled Navy veteran claimed Santos defrauded him in 2016, when he was homeless and his service dog was sick. The representative supposedly raised $3,000 to pay for surgery for the service dog. But the veteran said he never received the money.
A person named Anthony Devolder, a version of Santos’ full name, reportedly approached the veteran and told him that his organization, Friends of Pets United, could help him remove a tumor from the dog’s stomach. Santos then created a GoFundMe to raise the $3,000, which was reportedly never sent to the veteran.
In X, Saints accusations denied about the scam, writing: “Reports that he would let a dog die are shocking and crazy. “My work in defense of animals was the result of love and hard work.”
During his campaign, Santos reclaimed having founded that animal charity, and an investigation by The New York Times revealed that Santos used the organization to raise money but then pocketed the donations.
He suggested that Chinese communists kidnapped his niece.
during a interview with the Times In October, Santos spoke out about how his opposition to the Chinese Communist Party put a member of his family at risk.
Santos suggested that people affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party briefly kidnapped his 5-year-old niece in Queens, New York, and explained that she disappeared from a playground in the city and was seen on security footage 40 minutes later with two Chinese men.
“Look, I don’t want to get into conspiracy theories,” Santos said. “But you know, if the shoe fits, right?”
But there was there is no evidence to indicate his niece had been kidnapped, let alone by someone affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party.
“We found nothing at all to suggest it’s true,” a senior law enforcement official told the Times. “I would say, ‘He invented it.’”
He also allegedly defrauded his campaign donors, stealing their identities.
With all the recent reports, investigations and criminal charges, Santos’ misuse of campaign finances and lies to donors have been at the top of everyone’s radar.
Santos allegedly stole the identities of campaign donors and charged thousands of dollars to their credit cards without their authorization. Some of the money also reportedly ended up in his own bank account.
The representative was accused earlier this year on 23 counts of fraud, money laundering, identity theft and making false statements. He has pleaded not guilty and a criminal trial is scheduled for September 2024.
Reports It also showed that Santos spent $26,000 of campaign funds at an Italian restaurant in Queens, New York.
And she spent campaign money on Onlyfans, Botox and more.
The damning House ethics report released earlier this month revealed another of Santos’ lies.
Following a month-long investigation into Santos, the report alleged that he He spent campaign funds on a number of services and products. for him, including Botox, Sephora, spa treatments, an Onlyfans subscription, and luxury accessories.
Santos called the report “biased” and claimed that the House ethics committee was going to “go to extraordinary lengths” just to defame him.
