The palace of lies that George Santos had built over the years collapsed on him on Friday, December 1st. The elected Republican from New York entered the political history of the United States in an inglorious manner, becoming the sixth member of Congress to be expelled by his colleagues. Two-thirds of the vote in the House of Representatives was needed to confirm a rare and dramatic sanction. In an unusual bipartisan move, 206 Democrats and 105 Republicans decided to maintain a certain level of decency necessary to represent the American people. The far-right Trumpist came to the aid of George Santos.
Two previous attempts, in May and October, had failed, while revelations of the New York elected official’s embezzlement and lies had multiplied in the press since the start of the term. George Santos lied about his alleged Jewish origins, his degrees and his imaginary professional experience at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup. He hid his criminal record in Brazil. But the Mythomaniac was also a crook.
That’s the key lesson from a crucial House Ethics Committee report released two weeks ago. This 56-page text, based in particular on bank records, text messages and emails, represents a revealing addition to the parallel investigation by the judiciary, which has already indicted the elected official for these acts. It reveals “a complex web of illegal activity” linked to George Santos’ campaign accounts.
Santos exploited “every aspect of his candidacy.”
Spa treatments, Botox injections, luxury stores, restaurants, personal trips: the New York elected official spent his time using campaign donations for his own pleasure and interest. He also claimed that he transferred funds to his campaign that never existed, only to have them returned later. “Representative Santos attempted to fraudulently exploit every aspect of his candidacy for the House of Representatives for his own financial gain,” the Ethics Commission concluded. The elected official refused to cooperate with him in writing or verbally, thereby compounding his case.
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Far from the financial ease he had displayed for years, George Santos was insolvent. They were all inventions and illusions. Even members of his campaign team encouraged him to give up all public life at the end of 2021 as his past and sulphurous activities threatened to surface. He persisted and managed to get elected after his second attempt. His false statements to the audit authorities were subsequently easily discovered.
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